


Monsters Inside

by LikeMmmCookies



Category: Star Wars Episode VII, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Angst and Feels, Dark, Druids, Eventual Smut, F/M, Force Bond (Star Wars), Lots 'o canon divergence, M/M, Mildly Dubious Consent, Minor Poe Dameron/Finn, Original Character(s), Past Kylo/Hux, Red Riding Hood Elements, Romance, Slow Burn, Stormpilot, Violent Sex, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-23
Updated: 2017-11-30
Packaged: 2018-05-15 14:42:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 31
Words: 94,958
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5789281
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LikeMmmCookies/pseuds/LikeMmmCookies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rey is the last in a dynasty of legendary werewolf hunters.</p><p>Kylo Ren is a born-werewolf, poised to become a powerful druid.</p><p>When Rey learns she isn't who she thinks she is, friends become enemies. Rey and Kylo have no one to turn to, except each other.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Dawn crept into Rey’s eyes and she squeezed them against the rising light. A warm huff on her face followed by a soft muzzle nipping at her hair pulled her out of her light doze.

“Stop Evie,” Rey mumbled, swatting in the general direction of her horse’s face. She sat up, dragging her hands across her aching eyes, then rubbed her aching shoulders, then stretched her aching back.

 _Last leg of the journey. Almost done._ “Come on, Evie, let’s get going.”

Before long, Rey and Evie were trotting through the forest, fallen pine needles dampening the rhythm of Evie’s hooves and thick fog shifting around them. Rey tugged her scarlet cloak tighter around her to ward off the chill of the approaching winter, wishing she was home, curled up in front of a blazing fire with a good book.

By noon, the fog and chill had both evaporated under the heat of a cloudless sky. Evie could tell home was near and picked up her pace. Late in the afternoon, Rey crossed one of the bridges across a chattering brook that surrounded her small village, practically crying at the sight of the heavily sloped rooves and gridded windows. She tied Evie up in front of the shop of Unkar Plutt, who was unfortunately, her employer.

Plutt scowled at her as she walked towards the counter in the back of his general supply shop. In addition to the store, Plutt ran a rather large and profitable messenger service.

“I’m back. Payment please,” Rey demanded flatly, holding out a palm. Plutt crossed his beefy arms. “No payment until you complete one last errand.”

Rey gaped. “I just returned from a five day trip. I agreed to 16 stops and no more. You are legally contracted to pay me.”

Plutt sneered at her and Rey considered pulling out her saber and giving him a very clear idea of what she thought about his demand.

“Go to the magistrate. See if he cares about our little contract. It’s a short trip anyhow, just outside town. A small package to deliver to that old carpenter.”

Rey glared. “That’s nearly an hour there and back.”

“It’s close to your home.”

“But I have to come back HERE to get paid, you big lunk of blub-“ Rey cut off. No use in angering him further or he might decide not to pay her at all. She smoothed back pieces of hair that had escaped her messy buns and took a deep breath.

“Fine. Give me the package.”

Rey stormed out of Plutt’s shop, climbing onto Evie with sharp movements. Evie tossed her head in annoyance, sensing her mood. Rey ran a hand over the dark bay’s neck. “Sorry, girl. Just a little longer.”

Rey wasn’t entirely sure where the old carpenter lived, and stopped in front a series of crisscrossing road posts, trying to decipher the faded scrawl. One sign featured the glyph mark of a carpenter, with a nearly erased name below it. “Ha…lo. Halo? This man better be a goddamn angel with a halo to deserve this extra trip.” Rey guided Evie in the direction the sign indicated. “This way. Hopefully.”

As Rey and Evie moved through the forest along the beaten path that barely passed as a road, the hair on Rey’s neck stood up and her heart hammered. She whipped her head around, peering into the darkening woods. She saw nothing, but couldn’t shake the feeling of eyes on her. 

* * *

 

Eyes the color of a harvest moon followed Rey’s path through the forest, drinking in the sight of her wrapped in her bright cloak. The color fairly burned in Kylo Ren’s consciousness. She looked like blood and beauty. Kylo's hope rose as her the sweet smell of her fury filtered to him. She would know, soon. A low growl escaped from his throat before he turned tail and disappeared into the depths of the forest.

 


	2. Chapter 2

Rey approached a large, decrepit house. Maybe impressive once upon a time, but a series of small rooms had been haphazardly added on over the years, giving it a somewhat comical mismatched appearance. Rey sagged from the saddle and knocked on the door to the patchwork house. No answer. She knocked harder. Still no answer. The third time she banged on the door with all the strength she could muster, causing it to shudder in its frame.

Suddenly she felt the cold press of a blade at the back of her bare neck.

“You have five seconds to explain yourself before I make this day very unpleasant for you,” said a man’s gravel voice from behind her.

“You’ll have to try real hard because I’ve had one hell of a day,” Rey snapped. The man softly chuckled before the pressure on her neck disappeared. A strong hand grabbed her shoulder and whipped her around. Without thinking, she latched onto his forearm, twisting it and pressing her other hand on the back of his elbow until she felt the joint straining in the wrong direction.

The man just grunted. “You’re much stronger than you look. Let me go, I promise I won’t hurt you.” Rey cautiously let go of him and stepped away while he rubbed his elbow.

“I have a package from Plutt,” she told him.

His face brightened. “Ah! My new tools. Excellent. Where are they?” Rey jerked her head towards Evie.

“Well, come on, I haven’t got all night,” the man said companionably, starting towards Evie. Rey tugged the package out of one of the bags attached to Evie’s saddle. The worn packaging paper tore and items tumbled to the ground with various clinks of metal. “I’m so sorry,” she gasped, flying to pick them up. The old man just waved a hand, dismissing her apology. “It’s not like you dropped a baby, my tools will live.”

Rey gave the various tools back to the man, turning one of them over in her hand. “You must be trying to save money on a project,” she remarked.

He knit his eyebrows. “What makes you say that?”

Rey held one of the tools up in front of his face. “This rasp’s threads are crooked on one side.” She held up another piece, “and this gimlet looks uneven.” The man snatched the tools from her hand, inspecting them for himself before grunting.

“You’re right. These are not the tools I ordered.” Rey searched around the handle of a chisel, looking for a trademark brand on the wood. “No marks.” She handled the chisel to him. “I would blame Plutt. He probably ordered the cheaper tools and pocketed the difference.”

“That bastard,” the man rasped. “I’m insulted he thought I wouldn’t catch him. Who does he think I am?”

Rey shot the man a quizzical look at his unexpected reaction. “Ummm…who are you, actually?”

“Han Solo,” he announced.

She blinked at his name. _Coincidence,_ she concluded. The famous Han Solo wouldn’t be hiding out in a glorified shanty, woodworking.

“This pathetic attempt to swindle me won’t stand. The next time I see Plutt, I’m going to give him a piece of my mind. Preferably in the form of various bruises.”

Rey’s face lit up. “Can I help?”

Han gave her a roguish smile. “You’re not so bad, kid. You got a name?”

“Rey.”

He glanced at her red cloak, eyes thoughtful. “Rey. Resistance, huh?”

She froze. “How do you know that?”

He shrugged. Just one of those things you hear. Resistance werewolf hunters wear red cloaks.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “Only Vivants. And they aren’t Resistance.”

He studied her. “What’re you doing working for Plutt in this backwater town?”

Rey bit her lip. “My parents…they’re gone.”

Understanding clicked in his eyes and his face softened. “Oh, you’re _that_ Rey.”

“Yeah, that’s me,” Rey said, attempting sarcasm. “The sad, village orphan.”

Han pointed a finger in her face. “Hey, no one calls you that…anymore. You’re a survivor, and don’t let anyone else tell you differently.”

Rey smiled gratefully at him, feeling a rush of fondness for this man she barely knew.

“You seem to know a few things about carpentry.”

“It's how my family made a living. I know my way around a workshop pretty well.”

Han just gave a thoughtful nod. Rey couldn’t help the feeling that she was being evaluated for something. He gave another nod, this time dismissive. “Well Rey, thank you for bringing these too me,” he said, hefting his armful of tools. “Even if I still have to go back and put in a new order at Plutt’s.”

Rey nodded. “It was my pleasure.”

Han responded with a sly smile. “You don’t need to lie to me, Rey. You look like you are about to fall asleep on your feet.” She gave a weary smile as she climbed into her horse.

“Hey, Rey? I’ve got some projects building up that I could use some, uh, help with. Not as young as I used to be. Hauling around heavy things all day takes a lot longer.”

“Are you offering me a job?” She responded with a delighted look.

He gave her an appraising look. “Maybe. I’m thinking about it. It’s hard work. Doesn’t pay much. And if you mess something up I’ll never let you near another project again. Still better than working for Plutt.”

“You’re offering me a job.” Rey grinned at him.

Han smirked. “Come by in two or three days and we’ll see about that.”

Rey left with a smile on her face, feeling slightly less exhausted than before. The cheer lasted her through the long trip back to Plutt’s and then through the long trip home.


	3. Chapter 3

In the cover of night, Kylo Ren stalked around the tiny shanty of the girl known as Rey Vivant. He tried to keep away, but the need to be near her pulled at him all day until it became a painful wrenching in his chest. He gave in and as he neared her home, the sensation abated. He circled her house for a few minutes, trotting through the unkempt grass before settling down and resting his muzzle on his paws, his glowing eyes watching her dark windows.

Images flashed through his mind while he kept watch, fragmented and fleeting in his animal state. His strong hands whispering along her graceful neck, ghosting kisses along her collarbone. The electrifying feel of skin against skin as her limber body pressed to his. Disgust curled within him and Kylo violently shook his head with a snort, trying to shake loose these thoughts. His turmoil came to him in short, fragmented thoughts. 

_Not human._ _Wolf._ _Wait for her to know._

_Wolf._

_Wolf._

But as the moon rose and crowned the sky, Kylo Ren could not shut out the heady thoughts of being near to Rey. The images trickled down to his human self, feeding the part of him that he never could seem to extinguish.

_“Kylo Ren.”_

A heavy voice drummed through him, and his head came up, ears pricked forwards.

 _“It has begun. Come to us now.”_ The command in the voice nearly crushed him. Kylo whimpered, straining against the pull in the voice for a second, before giving in. With a look over his shoulder at Rey’s quiet house, he dashed away to answer the call of his alpha.


	4. Chapter 4

Finn woke up to the sounds of creatures snarling and voices screaming. The voices were intimately familiar.

Panicked, Finn scrambled out of his bed, grabbing his scabbard and slinging his bow over his shoulder before bursting out of his little hut. Not far away, a house was on fire. Even more terrified, Finn sprinted towards the burning building, freeing his broadsword on the way. He skidded into the clearing around his house. A scene of horror met him.

His family’s house burned, black smoke pouring out the windows. Through the open door, Finn could see every wall and beam of the house on fire. He whipped his head around, searching for his mother and sister. A thick pool of liquid gleamed on the ground next to a huddled figure. Finn rushed over, falling to his knees next to the body. He rolled the figure onto her back and gasped. The lifeless face of his mother stared at him, her face frozen in terror. Her throat was a gaping, shredded mess of blood and tissue. Her snapped collar bone protruded from her chest, bloody and wet. One shoulder was nearly ripped apart, and hideous bite marks trailed down her arm. Finn instantly recognized the bite. A canine bite, but larger than any natural creature.

Fear rolled over him and Finn scanned the clearing frantically for his sister. “Avaline!” He screamed into the night. He stumbled to his feet, running towards the burning building. As he approached the front steps, the roof crumbled in a shower of sparks and growing flames. The heat seared Finn’s face, forcing him back.

“Avaline!” He screamed again, his voice ragged with desperation. There was no answer. He looked around the ground and into the woods for any indication she had gotten out of the house in time. He nearly fell as his foot landed on a slippery patch of blood. His throat constricted. _Please not Avaline’s. Please, gods, no._

He followed a thin trail of blood, but it disappeared into the underbrush at the edge of the clearing. He stared, unseeing into the darkness of the forest. Suddenly, half a dozen pairs of glinting eyes stared back at him. Instinct kicked in, overpowering the need to keep looking for his sister and the desire to return to his mother’s broken body. Finn turned and he ran.

As he crashed through the forest, gasping wildly, the eerie sound of howling wolves rose behind him, filling his blood with cold dread as he fled from the only home he had ever known.


	5. Chapter 5

A hooded figure in black watched, amused, from the shadows, as the young man found his mother’s ravaged body. Delight filled him as the man’s face filled with grief and horror. He found it entertaining to watch the man stumble around the clearing, calling out a name that the hooded figure did not bother to listen to. He nearly cackled when the man saw the eyes of his wolves in the woods, waiting to chase him down and send him to meet his maker. The man tore into the woods, with the wolves not far from his trail. Pride welled in him as they hunted the young man with lethal grace.

Suddenly, a sharp pain pierced his mind. Growling, he spun, his cloak flaring around him. A large, black wolf stood before him, his keen eyes reflecting the firelight.

“Kylo Ren,” the black-clad figure greeted him with a dark look.

Kylo bowed in subservience, his neck exposed to the powerful and ancient Dark druid he called his Alpha.

“You hold back from the hunt, yet again. Your resistance costs me. It costs all of us.” The Alpha’s voice grated through him, feeling like sandpaper on his skin.

 _This is not the way,_ Kylo’s voice rich voice bloomed in the Alpha’s mind, who hissed at the wolf with fury.

“It is my way, and you will answer to my call and command.” The Alpha’s voice vibrated with authority, and Kylo whined as pain sliced through his body like a hundred razors digging into his muscles.

“Now, go. Join the rest of your pack in the hunt. You are supposed to be leading them and we have much to accomplish tonight.”

Kylo did not push against the command. He want to preserve what strength he had, in case he needed it later that night. Visions of Rey, wolves tearing at her throat, rose in his mind. He let out an anguished howl, and launched into the woods after his pack. He had to beat them to the village. He had to.


	6. Chapter 6

Rey woke in a cold sweat, fear shivering along her limbs. She lay in bed for a minute, listening to the night. She only heard the distant songs of a few crickets but she couldn’t shake the dread knotting her stomach. _You’re being paranoid_ , she chided herself. Still, she crawled out of bed, grabbing her saber that sat on her nightstand and belting it around her shirt, for the first time glad she fell asleep in her clothes. She tiptoed out her sagging front porch, surveying the land around her home. The freezing wood stung her toes and her breath fogged in the chilled area. She saw nothing in the shadows. Just as she turned to go back inside, a faint sound caught her attention off to her left. She turned back to the woods as the faint noise grew louder. Something crashed through the woods. She eased her blade out of the scabbard, nerves coiled.

The ruckus ended as a young man burst from the woods, sweat gleaming on his forehead in the light of a full moon. Relief crossed his face as he stumbled towards her, gasping. She flicked her saber up to his neck when he reached her porch, and he slammed to a stop.

“Please, help, we need to get out of here,” he wheezed.

“Why should I trust you? You’re armed.” She tilted her head towards the sword in his hand and the quiver and bow slung across his back.

“So are you,” he gulped. Rey opened her mouth to respond, but instead whipped her head towards the forest in the direction the man came from. The bays and yips of wolves on the hunt echoed through the trees.

“Wolves,” Rey growled, spinning on her heels and into her house.

“Not wolves,” the man insisted, following her into her house. She ignored him as she tugged on her boots, tucking several daggers into her shoes and strapping a set on her forearms under her shift.

“Are you listening to me?” The man demanded, tugging on her arm. “Not wolves. Shapeshifters.”

At this Rey froze, meeting his dark eyes. “They were wiped out years ago,” she disputed.

The man sharply shook his head. “Well, they’re back.”

“Are you absolutely sure?”

“Beyond a doubt. I found…a body in the woods, mauled. Shapeshifter bites all over.” Finn glanced quickly down but Rey caught the pain crossing his face. He looked up again. “Then they chased me through the woods.”

“They’re going to go straight to the village,” she muttered, pulling on her red cloak.

His mouth dropped open. “What! No! We have to get out of here. We have to get as far away from the village as possible.”

The man shrunk under her withering glare. “You can leave. I’m going to the village.”

His jaw set as he made a decision. “No, I’ll come with you.”  She gestured at the door and they filed out of the house.

As he followed her in the direction of Evie’s tiny shelter, she stole a glance at him.

“I’m Rey,” she offered, her tone the softest he’d heard yet.

“I’m Finn.”

Evie whinnied loudly as they approached, her eyes rolling back as she tossed her head. Rey grimaced. “Evie knows they’re nearby.” She slipped a bridle over her head, murmuring soothing words to her. She mounted Evie, holding out a hand to Finn. Finn climbed on behind her and wound his arms around her waist. She was trembling ever so slightly.

Rey urged Evie into a canter, breaking into a full gallop when they reached the road. As they rode, Rey felt the same shivers and feeling of being watched come over her that she felt on the way to Han Solo’s home. She shrugged it off, chalking it up to nerves.

* * *

 Kylo Ren pushed off his Alpha's command just enough to locate the familiar tug in his chest that endlessly pulled him to Rey before the suffocating need to _obey_ collapsed around him again. He wove almost silently through the underbrush, hoping she was riding along the road and not through the forest. He briefly joined up with the road, jubilant when he picked up her scent. He returned to the shadows, running abreast of the road as he followed the sound of hoof beats. He caught up with them before long, sighting a man riding behind Rey, arms snaked tightly around her. Jealousy rolled through him and a low growl rumbled in his throat. He fought against thoughts of the man’s blood, sweet and tangy in his mouth.

He craved the feel of bones beneath him, imagining the way they would crunch. His fangs in the man's throat, soft and sinking.

The pull of the full moon sang to him. He focus on the pull of Rey instead, his angel in red; her proximity helped drown the night out.

_Hunt with us._

The whisper of his wolves hummed in his mind, urging on the demons inside of him. 

Everything pulled at him, ripping and tearing him apart.


	7. Chapter 7

Rey pulled coldness and anger around her like a cloak, shoving down the crippling fear and memories that threatened to overwhelm her. She gulped down the cold air, focusing on the way it rushed in and out of her lungs.

As they approached the village, Rey and Finn heard the sounds of crackling fire, snarls, and screams. Rey cursed. “They’re already here.”

They flew into the town center and Finn vaulted off Evie, nocking an arrow to his bow with lightning speed. Rey freed her saber, looking for her first target.

Buildings billowed with flames and smoke, screams coming from inside. People darted about, some armed, some not. A young woman clutching a wailing child to her chest raced past Rey, a massive grey wolf snapping at the woman’s back. Rey swung her saber down in a powerful arc, satisfaction filling her as she felt the blade slice across the wolf’s side. The creature abandoned his pursuit of the woman, turning instead to snarl at Rey. Another wolf appeared out of the shadows, circling her, this one with a brown and grey coat. Real wolves would be too small for Rey to fight from horseback. But these wolves were massive, standing three, even four feet higher than a normal wolf. And shapeshifters didn’t fight like regular wolves They hunted as a pack but they didn’t fight as one. They splintered off into small groups. Rey knew a third wolf was probably nearby, waiting for the other two to distract her before it rushed in for the kill. They would move from person to person, picking people off one by one. Often, a handful of shapeshifters retained their human forms, fighting side by side or ransacking houses. From the burning buildings, Rey guessed several human shapeshifters were nearby.

Without warning, the two circling wolves lunged at Rey and Evie. Evie lashed out at the grey wolf, landing a solid kick on its side with an audible crunch. Rey swiped her blade at the other, slicing across a leg. They fell back, and resumed their circling. The rushed her again, but before Rey could make a move, a crushing weight landed on her back, knocking her from her horse. She fell with her sword arm pinned awkwardly underneath her, pain twinging in her elbow. The weight turned out to be a human, a man with wild eyes and a ropey scar running up his neck from beneath his black shirt. He pinned down her arms with his knees and Rey gasped as he crushed her wrist, forcing her to drop her saber. He landed two heavy blows on Rey’s face before she brought a leg up, hooking it around the man’s neck from behind, and pulled down. It was just enough for her to free her arms. She slipped a dagger out of one sleeve and sunk it directly into his jugular. Spurting blood splashed across her face and the man fell over, clutching at his neck while breaths gurgled in his throat.

She lurched to her feet and snatched the saber up, burying the pain that lanced through her wrist. Evie whined as the grey wolf sank his teeth into her shoulder. Rey hacked at the wolf’s throat with two hands and a crimson stain appeared on its fur. On her second swing the wolf went down, blood pouring from its throat.

Rey turned around just in time to see the grey wolf launch at her. It moved too fast, clamping her right arm between wickedly sharp teeth and knocking her over. She cried out as she felt fangs pierce skin and sinew. The wolf shook his head, threatening to rip her arm from her socket and bit down harder. Rey could feel her bones being crushed. Through the blinding pain, she saw the third wolf appear out of the shadows, dashing towards her, glittering yellow-orange eyes fixed on her throat. 


	8. Chapter 8

The world narrowed and until it was just Rey and the growing form of the third wolf. Rey kicked and screamed and writhed like a wild animal in a desperate attempt to get free.

Suddenly, a hulking black form burst from the shadows, crashing into the wolf headed towards Rey. A fourth wolf. His teeth were around the neck of the other wolf, and he flung the creature off course with a violent toss of his head. When he turned to face Rey, the wolf with its mouth clamped around her arm released her. It bowed its head low to the ground, whining in submission. The newcomer wolf snarled at the grey wolf and it ran off, tail tucked between its legs.

Rey struggled to sit upright, pulling a knife from her boot with her good hand as the wolf stalked closer. He was massive, towering over the other wolves. His silky coat was pitch black and his keen, yellow eyes glowed with a decidedly human intelligence.

Rey held her knife out in front of her. “You let your underlings do the hard work for you, fight your battles, and then swoop in at the last minute to claim the kill? You coward,” Rey spat at the black wolf. He tilted his head as he watched her, calm and safely out of distance from her reach.

Rey blinked blood out of her eyes, nerves stretched to breaking as she waited for the black wolf to close in. But he didn’t. Rey pushed away the adrenaline rushing in her veins, trying to clear her head and understand what was going on. It had to be a trap of some kind.

The third wolf approached again from behind the black wolf, eyes still hungrily on Rey. The black wolf spun and snapped, growling until it slinked off like the one before. The black wolf stood protectively between Rey and the town center, where fires and fights still raged, swiveling one ear to the conflict while he watched her.

“Get it over with,” Rey urged him, voice harsh, heart pounding. The wolf didn’t move, his gaze roving to her bloodied, crushed forearm, and his ears flicking around to the noises around them. With one last long look at Rey, the wolf turned and stalked away, sinking into the shadows. Rey was shocked to her core. She didn’t move, staring after the wolf, heart still beating erratically and electricity coursing up and down her back.


	9. Chapter 9

Finn stuck to the shadows, stepping forward to release a well-aimed arrow at a shapeshifter before melting back into the darkness. He spied a man with his sword to a boy’s throat, and Finn sent an arrow whistling his way. It sunk into the man’s back with a deep _thunk_ and the man slumped over. Finn ran over to the boy, who looked to be about his sister’s age. Finn swallowed back the despair that was on the brink of crashing around him all night. _Fight now, tears later,_ he reminded himself.

“You okay?” Finn offered the boy a hand up.

“Yeah, barely,” the boy grunted. “Thanks, you saved my life.”

Finn nodded, “I got more of that to do. Stay sharp.” As Finn turned away, a mark on the back of the slain man’s neck snagged his gaze. Finn pushed back the collar of the dead man’s shirt, exposing the rest of the heavy, black tattoo. It was a series of nested hexagons, with a circular emblem in the middle that looked like spokes of a wheel. It was exactly what he expected to see. The boy peered over Finn’s shoulder. “What does it mean?”

Finn set his jaw. “Trouble. Real bad trouble.”

“Worse than shapeshifters?”

“Way worse.”

The boy’s face paled. Finn ripped the dead man’s sword out of his grip and handed it to the boy. “Don’t fight them. You run. Run and hide. Got it?”

The boy nodded uncertainly. Finn strode away without another word, looking for Rey. He spotted her on one side of the town center, a man in a brown leather jacket helping her to her feet. One of her arms was bloody, held at an awkward angle.

A series of notes rang through the town, like a bugle, but deeper, almost like a foghorn. The notes repeated, growing louder. Finn heard the approach of hoof beats joined with the jangle of tack and armor. He drew an arrow, pointing it in the direction of the call, waiting for the newcomers to emerge from the smoke.

A group of cavalry galloped into the town center, four abreast, whooping and hollering. Finn counted at least 40 of them. They fell upon the shapeshifters and human invaders with enthusiasm, cornering them and pushing them towards the center of the town. Every single rider had the same symbol emblazoned on the front of their armor, a circular design that recalled the image of a bird in flight, wings stretched upwards towards the sky.

The Resistance had arrived.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Question for the readers: Can I make Chewie Han's oversized, over-intelligent, overly hairy dog? Chewie is a living being. I think of him like a person. But I really don't know how to work a Wookie into this. But I really want Chewie in this.


	10. Chapter 10

“Hey kid, you look like you need some help.” A gruff voice snapped Rey out of her daze. She looked up to see none other than Han Solo, wearing a worn brown leather jacket, and a giant crossbow in hand. A massive dog bounded up beside him, long pink tongue lolling out the side of his enormous mouth. He looked like a cross between a bear cub and puppy, if either of those things were the size of a small horse. He yapped at Rey, prancing over to lick her face.

“Wicket, knock it off, can’t you see she’s hurt? Make yourself useful.” Wicket backed off with another short yap at Han, trotting around them in circles, growling at everything and nothing in particular.

Han wrapped an arm around Rey’s good side, pulling her to her feet.

“I’m fine, I’m fine. It’s just my arm.”

“Just your arm,” Han scoffed. “Looks like it’s about to fall off.”

Rey managed a weak smile. “Feels like it’s about to fall off.” Han pulled a long strip of white cloth out of the messenger bag at his hip, gesturing with it toward Rey’s arm.

“We need to get the bleeding under control.” She grit her teeth against a wail as Han tightly wrapped up her arm and then bound it in a makeshift sling. She looked around while he bandaged her arm, searching desperately for Finn but she didn’t see him anywhere. Rey snatched up her saber when Han was done. She felt better with it in hand, even if it was the wrong hand.

Han eyed her bandaged arm. “How did you manage to get out of that one?” He asked, an odd pitch to his voice.

Rey opened her mouth, unsure how to explain the black wolf. She was interrupted by the booming notes of a war bugle and the sound of approaching riders. Wicket let out several deafening barks. Han’s face clouded over, eyebrows pulled together in apprehension. “The Resistance is here,” she breathed.

* * *

 

The notes of a war bugle blared in Kylo Ren’s sensitive ears and low growl rumbled in his throat. It was the Resistance, finally.

He reached out to the rest of his pack, awareness of each of them blinking into existence in his mind. He sent out a series of instructions. _Resistance is here. Surface engage. Then fall back. Scouts circle and then pursue. Stick to the plan._ None of his pack resisted his command, they knew better than to test Kylo Ren.

Kylo took a short lap through the village, surveying their work. At least half the town was on fire and the streets were littered with dead or injured townspeople. The Knights of Ren had done well tonight, Snoke would surely be pleased. He caught sight of Rey on his way out of the village. She was with a tall man with greying hair, an enormous furry dog nearby. His heart lurched at the sight, pain ripping at him as if he’d been stabbed, and he wasn’t sure if it was because of Rey or because she was with his father. He growled again. Nothing good could come of Rey and Han in the same place. For a moment he ignored his father, soaking up the image of Rey, swathed in her scarlet cloak, face streaked with blood, dirt, and tears. She pulled up the hood, cutting of his view of her face. Kylo left the village, bounding away into the darkness to wait for his Knights.

* * *

 

Finn struggled through the renewed fighting towards Rey and the man, weaving between clashes.

“Rey, you’re okay,” Finn exhaled heavily as he reached Rey’s side.

“Finn!” She threw one arm around him. He started to return the embrace when she yelped in pain and danced away. He noticed her makeshift sling and blood stained shirt under her red cloak.

“What happened?”

“Wolf got me,” she grunted. “I’ll be fine. Come on, let’s get back to it,” she insisted, jerking her head toward the town center where the Resistance were battling the shapeshifters. “This is Han,” she called out, jerking her head in the other direction, toward the old man with the dog. “Han, this is Finn.”

“Nice bow you got there,” Han remarked, shooting an admiring gaze at Finn’s weapon.

“Nice humongous cross-bow you got there,” Finn returned with a friendly smile, before falling in behind Rey.

Finn stuck close to Rey, protecting her bad side in the conflict. They weren’t fighting for long. After just minutes, the shapeshifters and their human counterparts retreated, loping out of the town and into the forest.

“Don’t pursue! Recovery formations! Get these fires under control. Healers, search out the wounded. Scouts, establish a perimeter around the town. I want to make sure every damn shapeshifter is dead or running with its tail between its legs. Poe and your platoon, to me!” The commands came from the general, a small woman in a spotless white military jacket atop a dappled grey horse. Despite her small stature, her voice carried over the din, and her fighters responded to her calls immediately. Recognition flickered in Rey’s mind. The last time she saw this woman, she was Lieutenant Leia Organa-Skywalker. Rey was beyond relieved to see a familiar face, even more so now that she was General Organa.

The woman glanced their direction and wheeled her horse around, coming straight for them. As she approached, Rey noticed she and Han had locked gazes. Rey’s eyes bounced back and forth between Leia and Han, and she gasped when the realization hit.

“ _Han Solo,”_ she hissed to Han. “You _are_ THE Han Solo.” She covered her eyes with one hand. “I knew it.” She eyed Han, with his mop of grey hair and worn leather jacket. She had never met Leia’s husband, they separated not long after Rey was born. He was little scruffier than she expected the husband of Leia Organa to look. A lot scruffier. She smacked Han on the shoulder.

“Hey!” His tone was significantly more hurt than his shoulder.

“How come you didn’t tell me?”

“You didn’t need to know!”

She gave a frustrated shake of her head as General Organa and the other riders reached them, pulling her horse short and gracefully sliding off his back. She handed off the reins, and turned first to Rey, giving her a warm smile.

“Rey Vivant, it's good to see you. If it wasn’t for your red hood I wouldn’t have recognized you. You've grown up so much.” To Rey’s surprise, Leia stepped closer and hugged her. “I am so sorry about your parents, Rey. You know the Resistance did everything it could to locate them.”

Rey gave a sad smile as Leia pulled away. “I know you did.” Leia lightly tugged on the edge of Rey’s hood. “It warms my heart to see the Vivant red hood again. Your parents would be so proud.” Rey swallowed unexpected tears, offering Leia a grateful smile.

“And you are?” Leia moved on, addressing Finn. He gave her a firm handshake. “I’m Finn Soldat-Tempete. I’m honored to meet you, General.”

“Likewise, Mr. Soldat-Tempete. Your bravery today is admirable.”

“It was the right thing to do,” Finn modestly replied.

Leia turned to face Han, and they regarded each other in silence. Finn and Rey subtly moved away from the couple to give them some privacy.

“It’s good to see the General and Han together again, even when I’m not sure if their conversation will end with shouting or hugging.”

Finn and Rey turned towards the voice. It belonged to a man, looking in his late 20s or early 30s, with perfectly tousled brown hair, a strong, square jaw, and sultry brown eyes.

“Captain Poe Dameron,” the man introduced himself, shaking Rey and Finn’s hands.

“I’m Rey-“

“Vivant,” Poe finished for her. “The Vivants are Resistance legends, I’m pretty sure your family was actually in one of my history books.”

Poe’s gaze moved quickly to Finn. "Finn, right?" Poe eyed Finn’s quiver. “All those red-fletched arrows I saw out there yours?”

“Those are mine,” Finn affirmed.

Poe’s eyes glowed with admiration. “You’re a hell of a marksman, Finn,” he praised him, clapping Finn on the shoulder.

Finn cleared his throat, ducking his head bashfully. “I’m flattered you think so.” Rey would have sworn Finn was blushing.

“No flattery involved if it's the truth.” Poe smiled and bit his lip, his hand still on Finn’s shoulder. Finn’s blush deepened. “Come on, let me introduce you to the rest of my platoon.” Poe turned Finn towards the other riders, his hand across Finn’s shoulders now. Rey smothered a grin. Poe and Finn were in the middle of absolute mayhem, and they were _flirting_ with each other. Finn glanced over his shoulder, catching Rey’s small smirk. She shot an impish look at Poe’s head, waggling her eyebrows. Finn scowled at her and Rey silently chuckled.

Rey left the platoon, moving towards the rest of the Resistance fighters. They were spraying water on smoldering buildings with fabric hoses and water pumped from the town center’s enormous pressurized pumps. Fighters were carrying the wounded into an intact building for treatment from the Healers. Archers and pikemen stood at attention throughout the town, some mounted, some not. From the sheer number of soldiers present, Rey figured they sent a second unit of foot soldiers and other recovery members in after the cavalry unit. Everyone was moving with efficient purpose, they all looked like they had done this a dozen times before. Rey wasn’t cheered by that thought.

Rey searched through the crowd for another familiar face, one she also hadn’t seen since childhood. He wasn’t hard to spot. Well over seven feet tall and looking like he was half bear, he stuck out of any crowd.

Rey bellowed across the square. "Chewie!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Huge thanks to Octavian_Grey and my other commenters for helping me figure out how to work Chewie into this. Props to anyone who finds the episode VI reference :D (and the very much not hidden VII reference). All the chapters will be longer now because I realized if I keep making them super short, I'm going to have like 8439483 chapters by the time this is finished.


	11. Chapter 11

A giant figure whipped his head in Rey's direction, crazy brown and black hair flying. “Raaaaagh!” He thundered. His face broke out in a terrifyingly wide grin and he practically bowled people over as he crossed the square in a handful of flying leaps, scooping Rey up in a crushing hug and spinning her around, like she was a little girl again.

Rey hugged him tightly before muttering, “Chewie, I’m happy to see you too, but you’re squishing me.”

“Sooooaghg,” he apologized, setting her down. Rey just beamed at him. She had spent limited time with him as a child, but he had always been one of her favorite parts of visiting the Resistance headquarters. He always had a tasty gift and a funny story from his most recent trip to an exotic country ready for her.

Chewie let out a series of seemingly unintelligible grumbles.

“I missed you too. No, my arm will be okay, I hope.”

“Waauugghrrraaa?”

Rey pointed behind her, in the direction of Han and Leia. “He’s over there.

“Auggrrhuugg.”

“Yeah, let’s give them a minute.”

Poe and Finn came up next to them, Poe’s buckskin horse in tow. Wicket raced over, leaping at the horse’s face and barking excitedly. The horse whickered, nuzzling the overly exuberant dog. "BB-8 missed his buddy," Poe said, grinning at the animals. 

“We’re gathering for a briefing.” Poe gestured with his head towards the town’s small temple, dedicated to the goddess Danu, where people were filing into the building, its intricate stonework and tall spires thankfully undamaged. Rey cast a look over her shoulder to Han and Leia, who were still deep in conversation, before following the group towards the temple. 

* * *

 

Han and Leia didn’t speak for several minutes. Han broke the silence. “I saw our son, Leia. I saw him.” Grief pulled at Leia’s face, and she wrapped a hand around Han’s arm, comforting herself, as well as him.

“What is it Han?” Leia peered at him, instantly recognizing he was holding back. Han hesitated before answering. “He…saved Rey from another shapeshifter.”

Leia’s mouth opened but she didn’t say anything. They both stole befuddled glances at Rey. Leia looked troubled by this information, but Han didn’t press her.

“Han, I’m sending a delegation to Chathair. I _need_ you to go along. You’re still a face they associate with the Resistance, no matter how far away you run.”

Han attempted a crooked smile. “Your other scoundrels not up to the task?”

Leia pressed one soft hand against his cheek. “There has only ever been one scoundrel in my life. And I want him back.”

Han reached out, pulling Leia into his arms. Long ago, she expected to get used to the satisfaction that she fit perfectly beneath his chin, or the relief when his strong chest blocked out all the darkness in her word like a wall, or the encompassing warmth of his arms wrapping around every part of her. But she never had.                                                                                                                                                           

* * *

 

Han slipped into the temple, joining Rey, Finn, Poe, and Chewie along a back wall. The central sanctuary was jammed with townspeople desperate for answers. Many sported injuries, covered with hastily made bandages. The need for information outweighed their pain.

Leia stepped up to the central dais and a hush fell over the crowd. Her voice was strong, even, and matter-of-fact as she delivered information.

“Citizens of Agé-de, I commend your bravery tonight. You fought well. I apologize we didn’t receive the news of your attack sooner. Markings on the human invaders and the significant presence of shapeshifters indicate the First Order perpetrated this attack.” Alarmed murmurs and some gasps rippled through the crowd.

“As some of you may be aware, the First Order has attacked several other towns, as they move southwest from the Northern Territories. Their targets have previously been much larger towns. For this reason, and because you’re located so far south of the capital, Agé-de was not on our watch list. We don’t know why they picked your village, any information would be helpful.”

Rey watched curiously as Finn bowed his head, making a close study of the floor.

“A unit of Resistance fighters, including Healers, will remain here for the next several days to assist with recovery. That’s all the information I have for you at this time.” Leia stepped down from the dais as village officials rushed up to her, inundating her with questions.

Poe’s mouth was stretched tight. “What is it?” Rey questioned, drawing the other’s eyes to him.

“That’s not all we know about what the First Order is up to. We think they’re headed for the Capital. They’re trying to draw us out with all these smaller attacks, tire us. It’s a smart strategy. They know we won’t abandon a town to their violence, and that they don’t stand a chance if we fight alongside the New Republic. And it’s working. We lose fighters at every skirmish, while their forces get bigger. They pull out before we inflict major damage. We tried pursuing them a few times, but it’s like they disappear into thin air.

“A Dark druid,” Rey murmured. Poe nodded grimly before continuing. “Yes, a druid is cloaking them. That’s our best guess, anyway. General Organa believes the Dark druid Snoke is orchestrating everything. Without Luke Skywalker around to detect his invocations and to counteract them, we’re fighting blind. General Organa is strong in the Force, but she doesn’t have the sort of training Luke does.”

“What happened to Luke?” Rey sounded alarmed.

Poe faltered, his glance darting nervously to Han.

“He was devastated after Ben’s death. Disappeared,” Han offered up, his voice stiff. He abruptly ducked away, striding out of the temple. Chewie let out a sorrowful rumble and followed his friend out.

“Who’s Ben?” Finn inquired curiously.

Poe swallowed, looking this time at Rey, who gave him a small nod.

Poe resumed, his voice softer. “Ben Solo was Han and Leia’s son. A shapeshifter attacked him, mauled him to death. The same shapeshifter that killed Rey’s brother and his whole unit.” Tears crowded Rey’s eyes. Finn slipped his hand into hers, giving it a squeeze. “Luke blamed himself,” Poe continued. “Felt like he failed to protect him. Ben was living with him at the time, training to be a Light druid. The Resistance wasn’t the same after that happened. Han left too. At least we knew where he was…most of the time.”

“That was about 15 years ago,” Rey added. Finn absorbed this information quietly, Rey and Poe each deep in their own thoughts.

Leia appeared beside them, dispelling the gloom. She wasted no time with pleasantries. “I’m sending a select group to Chathair to warn the Council about the First Order. People die while they bicker over trivial matters of state. We need to convince them to move against this threat. Rey, I want you in this delegation. Your family name means something to the Council.”  

Rey vehemently shook her head, starting to back away. “No. Absolutely not. I want no part of this.” Rey rushed off, headed for the door. Leia sighed gently before following her.

Poe and Finn looked at each other. “Well, it’s just us now,” Poe said cheerfully, grinning at Finn. “Come on, General Organa will want us to leave within a day or two, we have things to get in order.” Poe grabbed Finn’s hand, pulling him along.

“I can’t come with you,” Finn halfheartedly insisted. “I’m not Resistance.”  

Poe stopped short and Finn collided with his chest. “I want you to come with,” Poe demurred. “I think you do too.” Finn didn’t object. Poe started walking again, still holding Finn’s hand. “Besides, you are a damn good shot, better than most of my men. I would want you to come regardless.”

“Regardless? Regardless of what?”

Poe just shot Finn a racy look and bit his lip.

* * *

 Kylo Ren paced back and forth in the woods, his unease agitating Hux, who leaned against a tree not far from him. Hux followed Kylo’s movement with narrowed eyes. “Would you just sit still for five minutes?”

Kylo snapped at Hux without breaking his stride, a growl rumbling in his throat as he treaded past the flame-haired man.

Hux’s mouth tightened. “Why do I even bother asking,” he grumbled to himself. Mid-stride, Kylo’s form morphed into a blur of soft light and color, emerging in his human form, clad only in a pair of tight-fitted black pants. He resumed his pacing, this time closer to Hux.

“What is taking them so long?” Kylo huffed. Hux’s gaze skittered across Kylo’s bare torso, his broad chest and defined muscles easily visible under the light of the full moon. Hux’s insubordinate mind filled in the details he couldn’t see right then, like the trail of dark hair from Kylo’s navel that disappeared into the waistband of his pants. Kylo flashed Hux a smug look, sensing where the other man's emotions wandered.

Hux internally cursed, pushing away memories. “General Organa is probably briefing everyone,” he answered Kylo, his voice pinched.

Kylo turned away from him, staring into the forest towards Agé-de.

“I received some interesting information from two of your Knights, Ren.” He savored the way Kylo’s shoulders tightened, fists clenching.

“Hael has a bite injury on his neck. He claims you gave it to him. Brin confirmed his allegations. She says you chased them both away from a townsperson. A girl.”

Kylo swore and whirled to face Hux, face stormy. “Have you told Snoke?”

Hux almost smiled. “Not yet.”

 Kylo wished he could smack the pleased sneer off his pretty face. “Are you going to?”

“I have no reason not to.”

Kylo’s features softened, and he sidled up to Hux, who knew exactly what Kylo was doing.

“Wait to tell him.” It was a command, but Kylo’s voice was silky. He watched, and felt, Hux’s internal struggle. They hadn’t been lovers for months, but Kylo would never stop enjoying how easily he got under Hux’s smooth, calm skin.    

 _Be strong, be strong, be strong,_ Hux mentally chanted.

“Please, Hux?” Kylo’s voice was a low murmur now, as he caught Hux’s gaze with a deep stare. Even in the darkness, Kylo’s dark brown eyes swept him in. Hux moved his gaze up, to Kylo’s lush, dark hair waving against his forehead. He swallowed, shifting his eyes downwards, to Kylo’s lightly parted lips, his still-bare chest far too close. Hux shut his eyes for a moment. _Be strong, be strong, BE strong._

“I’ll wait, for now,” Hux sighed, his voice weary. Kylo quirked a devilish smile at Hux before pacing off to stare towards the village again. _Damn that man and his stupid, perfect, fucking face,_ Hux fumed. He didn’t have anyone to blame but himself.

Even from several feet away, the man’s conflicted jealousy and ire rolled off him in waves. Hux was made of fizzling exasperation wrapped in a thin layer of cold detachment. He played the part of an ice cube very well, but Kylo knew better.

“Is it her?”

Kylo didn’t turn around, didn’t answer. Hux took his silence as an affirmation.

“How did you find her?”

Silence again. Kylo didn’t know how to explain the way everything inside him felt like it was attached to a million strings, each one endlessly pulling and tugging and twanging against his consciousness until he drew close to Rey. He didn’t know to explain that the dull ache that gnawed at him his whole life had merely been the absence of _her._

Hux tried to stifle his irritation at being ignored. “You wouldn’t even know about her if not for Snoke.” The mention of Snoke needled Kylo too sharply.

“I know,” Kylo said harshly. “It doesn’t matter how I know about her or how I found her. She’s mine now.”

Hux was chilled by the fierce determination in Kylo’s voice. “Be careful, Ren, that your personal interests not conflict with orders from Snoke,” he added, before the two men lapsed into silence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now we know why Kylo and Hux are always so salty to each other.


	12. Chapter 12

Rey stepped out of the cacophony of the temple and headed towards the line of Resistance horses tied up along a picket, find where she’d secured Evie at the end. She rubbed the horse between her eyes, whispering soothing words to her. She wandered away from the horses, retreating from the village main. She pushed back her hood, savoring the rush of autumn air that wrapped around her neck. She tilted her head to stare at the stars through the slowly dissipating smoke, and let out heavy breath.

“Rey!”

In her periphery, Rey saw General Organa step up beside her where she stood at the edge of the village.

“A’chungaidh leighis is goirte, ‘si is moth’tha deaneamh feum,” Leia intoned softly. Rey looked over to see the General staring at the night sky as well.

“The medicine that hurts the most is the best healer,” Rey translated the old proverb, looking back at the sky.

“I know being with the Resistance again is painful,” Leia paused, her voice becoming pensive. “Memories are everywhere. But you belong with us.” Leia tugged on Rey’s red cloak. “Why do you still wear this?”

Rey finally looked at the General. “It’s who I am,” she answered without thinking.

Leia offered a small smile, eyes kind. “That’s why you need to go to Chathair.” She slipped away, leaving Rey to her thoughts. Rey knew the General was right. The Vivants had fought by the side of the Resistance, and before that, the Rebel Alliance. They had been fighting shapeshifters and Dark druids for nearly two hundred years. Every time she put on her red cloak, the weight of the thick fabric settling into her, Rey knew her family would be ashamed of her. Part of her cursed her heritage for taking her brother, probably her parents, and now her future from her, but another part of her glowed with the pride instilled from birth for who she was and what she was born into. Rey marched in the direction of the temple to tell Leia to include her in the delegation to the capital. Fate had caught up with her and she couldn’t run from it any longer.

Over an hour later, Rey found herself slumped on a hard stone bench in the temple, in the background of a discussion between Resistance leaders about the best way to approach the Council. Her vision blurred and their voices dimmed to a low drone in her head. She wasn’t sure why she was even in this discussion. She looked around for Finn, sighting him just as he stepped into the temple. She slipped away, meeting him halfway across the domed room.

“I came to get you,” Finn informed her. “We can leave, there’s nothing else for us to do tonight.” He glanced at her injured arm. “Let’s find you a Healer for your arm first.” Rey shook her head. “It’s fine for tonight. They have more important things to deal with.” Finn looked partly impressed and partly appalled, but he didn’t argue with her.

“I’ll take you back to your home,” Rey offered, heading in the direction of her horse before Finn could object. Other than Finn occasionally giving Rey directions, they rode in exhausted silence. In the dim light of the approaching dawn, Rey sighted a thin column of smoke rising from the trees not far from them. Finn’s arms around her were rigid, constricted almost painfully against her waist as they rounded a bend. Rey softly gasped at the scene that met them. She surveyed the heap of smoking rubble, and her stomach turned when she saw a body off to one side. Finn slipped off Evie, taking halted, measured steps towards the body, and kneeled next to it. Rey followed him, anger curling into her as she got closer. _Mauled_ wasn’t an appropriate term for what happened to the woman lying in front of them. The shapeshifters had shredded her. Rey could see it happening in her mind: two or three shapeshifters would latch onto her, a wrist clamped between fangs, a mouth to an ankle so she couldn’t run, and then bowled her over from behind or dragged her to the ground. They would inflict non-lethal wounds first, then rip out her throat last. Regardless of how it happened, Rey knew she died in abject terror and unbelievable pain. Her death wasn’t meant to be efficient. It was meant to be a message. Rey studied Finn, reminded that she knew absolutely nothing about him. He brushed the back of a finger against the woman’s cheek, already mottled purple and blue and Rey laid a hand on his shoulder, her gaze flitting between the woman and Finn’s faces. They both had the same arched eyebrows, the same high cheekbones in a balanced, oval face. Her face held deep lines etched from hard years that Finn’s features barely hinted at. His mother, Rey decided. She felt a rush of deep respect, bordering on awe. He had burst out of her woods with shapeshifters on his heels because they had just finished slaughtering his mother and destroying his home, but he remained stoic the whole night, fighting with a clear head. So many people were probably still alive because of his strength. Without warning, Finn swiftly stood.

“I’ll be right back,” he said, voice low. He disappeared into the wood behind the smoldering remains of his home. Rey’s gaze didn’t shy away from mangled body near her. Every new bite she spotted fanned her anger and she struggled to tame it. Unbridled anger would just cloud her mind. _Strength in our arms, truth in our hearts, clarity in our minds,_ Rey chanted to herself, repeating the old mantra of her family. Finn reappeared, holding two axes and a small barrel of oil in his hand. He avoided her gaze as he handed her an axe, before turning to the forest and sinking his tool into low-hanging branch of a tree. She joined him, awkwardly hacking as best she could with one arm, and they wordlessly piled brush and wood into a pyre, before lifting the stiff body of his mother on top. The sun rose, illuminating the forest with a radiance that seemed to mock their grim task.

Finn sprinkled the oil across the small pyre. “I don’t have anything to mark it with,” Finn whispered, his voice broken. Rey pulled a board from the smoking ruins, half left unburned. She pulled a knife out of her boot, handing both to Finn. He began carving into the board with painstakingly neat lettering.

_Roselle Soldat-Tempete_

_May you join with perfect unity to the Force_

_May you find freedom in the Afterlife_

_May your soul be reborn_

He set the board on his mother’s chest, then produced flint from his pocket, striking it against his axe head near a spot of oil-sprinkled tinder. It caught, a low flame spreading unevenly across the bottom of the pyre. The flames grew, licking their way up until the body was barely visible among them. Rey drew the glyph for a peaceful passing into the Afterlife in the air with her good hand, and Finn added one meant to call the goddess of death, before shooting her a grateful glance. She believed glyph-calling to be useless unless one was a druid, but the action was still respectful. Rey slipped her hand into Finn’s, and they stood in front of the fire until the heat began to scorch their skin.

 

* * *

 

Rey sat cross-legged on a thin mattress on the ground, watching Finn move swiftly around his one-room hut, packing items into a large bag. She told him he couldn’t stay here by himself, citing his safety in case the shapeshifters came back for him. But really, she didn’t want him to be alone. He didn’t protest much. As they rode away from his home, she felt him twist to look behind them, before leaning forward against her back, resting his forehead on her shoulder.

 Finn didn’t speak once on the ride to Rey’s home. She found him sitting on the edge of her bed when she returned from taking care of Evie. Her heavy curtains were pulled shut against the bright morning sun, casting her single-room home into a dreary gray gloom. She eased down next to him and tried to pull off her long boots with one hand.

“Can I help?” Finn’s mild voice nearly frightened Rey after not hearing him say anything for so long. She nodded, angling her legs towards him. He gently slipped off her boots and neatly lined them up next to her bed.

“Thanks,” Rey began. “This arm better heal quick because it’s going to be such a-”

“It’s my fault,” Finn interrupted her. 

“What is?”

“My mother is dead. My sister is missing. My house is a pile of ash. And it’s my fault.” Finn’s voice broke on the last words and he covered his eyes with one hand.

“That’s can’t possibly be true.”

Finn didn’t respond, didn’t move, until Rey slipped one arm around his back. He looked up at her, tears pooling in his dark eyes.

“I used to fight for the First Order.”

Shock rippled through Rey at Finn’s confession.

Finn turned to stare at the floor, fingers fidgeting on his knees, and then the story began to pour out of him. “My father and I both did. My family and I use to live in the far north. That’s where the First Order was based, and where it grew out of. Most of the Northern Territories already operate outside of the New Republic’s reach.  Back then, it was a few steps away from anarchy. The First Order used this to their advantage, offering settlements the protection and order of organized government. Many settlements were happy to join. The First Order was so young, no one really saw where they were headed.” Finn paused, clearing his throat and Rey squeezed his shoulder.

“The First Order’s motto is pretty much ‘join or die.’ Individuals who resisted their rule just disappeared. They razed whole settlements sometimes. Slaughtered everyone but the youngest of children and the infants. Most of those kids are probably shapeshifters now. They like to turn them as young as possible. My father was ‘enlisted’ into their infantry right away, and I was placed into one of their youth programs, intended as a future soldier. We were separated from my mother and sister and from each other. When I was 17 they placed me in a division and sent us out to convince a small settlement to join the First Order. The settlement was mostly a mix of fugitives from the Republic and mercenary types. They resisted. The First Order enforcer, Kylo Ren, ordered the settlement destroyed and the settlers killed.”

Rey’s chest tightened with dread, afraid of where Finn’s explanation was headed. He turned to Rey again, eyes meeting hers, and as she stared into his warm eyes, so trusting and honest, she couldn’t imagine him slaughtering anyone in cold blood. As if reading her thoughts, Finn continued his story, his tone almost pleading. “I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t do it, Rey! I couldn’t kill innocent settlers. As the soldiers herded the settlers into a building, I snuck away from the division and just _ran_. Almost killed myself trying to get to my mother and sister before the First Order did. We all had to flee when I reached them. Went as far south as we could, found a non-descript village, kept to ourselves. There’s a bounty out on my head, alive, so they can torture me to death when they get me. The First Order doesn’t tolerate traitors.” Finn gave a bitter snort. “Kylo Ren probably had my father executed, as a punishment, as a warning.” Finn’s long account came to an abrupt halt and he hung his head.

His voice dropped to a whisper. “Now my mother is dead. My sister is missing. They probably picked our village just because I lived here. It’s my fault.” His face crumpled, and he broke into deep heaving sobs. He covered his face with his hands, and Rey pulled him tighter. He turned into Rey’s chest, shoulders shaking as he cried uncontrollably. Rey fought back her own tears, feeling broken apart by his suffering. “No, it’s not. It’s not your fault,” she repeated over and over, laying her cheek on top of his head as he curled into a tight ball against her small frame.

She let Finn cry himself to the brink of utter exhaustion. After his cries slowed to shuddering breaths, he slumped back on her bed. “I can sleep on the floor,” he mumbled, trailing off and struggling to keep his swollen eyes open. “Don’t be ridiculous,” Rey mumbled back. She laid down next to him, pulling the blankets over top. Rey’s last thought before she drifted away was a memory of falling asleep wedged against her brother, Desi. When she woke up to nightmares, he crawled into bed with her and stayed until she fell asleep again. A virtual stranger was asleep next to her and the darkness of an unavoidable war hung over them, but Rey couldn’t remember the last time she felt so safe.


	13. Chapter 13

Rey woke to a crackling fire, sunlight, and her bath filled with steaming water. _Finn,_ she mused, as her glance snagged on a note laying on her table. She recognized Finn’s neat lettering from the grim funeral just hours before.

“ _Gone to town with Poe. Will send the doctor your way. Stay put until then. Relax a little and enjoy the bath.”_

“Relax” was underlined twice with heavy, even lines. She took his advice. She felt crusty with blood, ashes, dirt, and layers of sweat. She sprinkled the water with freshly crushed mint and lemon balm leaves plucked from the plants growing outside her house, stripped off her grimy clothing, and set to scrubbing down every inch with a bar of strong lye soap. She skirted her bandaged arm, trying not to get it too wet. She delayed getting out until the water was tepid, but the desire not to be naked in a bath when the doctor arrived drove her to get dried and dressed in a fresh pair of clothes. She pulled her cloak on out of habit, the weight of the heavy fabric was comforting. Just as she pulled the clasp at her neck, a wave of _something_ washed over her, like the tingle of lightning that struck too close. Sharp knocks sounded at the door. Rey swung it open and met a wide chest and broad shoulders. She stepped back to take in the tall, dark-haired man in her doorway, one hand poised to knock again, the other holding a large leather bag marked with the glyph of a doctor. His face was neutral, but not unfriendly, and deep brown eyes searched her inquisitively.

“Are you the doctor?” Rey suppressed an immediate grimace.

“A young man named Finn sent me.” The doctor’s gaze was steady on her. To her dismay, Rey’s heart started to race. She berated herself, it wasn’t like her to get flustered by a pretty face.

“Ah, um, my arm,” she stuttered, half raising it before wincing and remembering that it was broken and moving hurt. “Sorry, but I don’t recognize you.”

“I’m Dr. Ren, I’m from a town over. Helping out with the aftermath of last night. I would shake your hand but I suspect it wouldn’t feel very nice,” he joked, a half-smile warming his face, one cheek hinting at an almost-dimple. Rey just stared at him. The doctor licked his lips and pressed them together uneasily, then stepped past her and into her house without invitation. He plunked his bag down on her table, slung his heavy black cloak over the nearest chair, and pushed the rest of her curtains open. Irritation flickered in Rey.

“Sit down,” he said, one hand brushing the small of her back as he guided her towards her bed. Rey bristled at the way he ordered her around, but was vaguely disappointed when he moved away. Rey watched the muscles in his broad back shift under his white shirt as he pulled supplies out of his bag. He turned around and caught her staring. A soft blush stained her cheeks as he crouched down in front of her.

He gestured towards her cloak. “This is in the way.” When Rey just nodded silently, he lightly scrunched his eyebrows together and she twitched with realization. “Oh! You need me to take it off.” But his hands were already there, his fingers brushing against her collarbone as he deftly undid the clasp and then eased the garment off her shoulders. Rey shivered, and she told herself it was from the sudden rush of chilly air. Cradling her elbow in one large hand, the doctor carefully pushed the loose sleeve of her shirt up to her shoulder, his cool fingers grazing along the inside of her arm as he rolled the excess fabric out of the way, leaving her skin tingling.

Without warning Dr. Ren pressed the back of his hand against her forehead. “You’re too warm, do you feel like you have a fever?”

“No, I just run hot. I’ve always been like this.”

He didn’t seem to accept her answer, pressing his fingers under her jawline and dragging them down her neck. The tingle intensified. He frowned, but didn’t seem to find whatever he was feeling for. She grimaced as he peeled the bandages off her arm and surveyed the damage.

“Your arm is full of teeth marks,” he remarked mildly.

“Shapeshifter got me in Agé-de last night. I swear I heard bones snapping.”

Dr. Ren didn’t seem fazed by the mention of shapeshifters. “I need to numb the area so I can examine it.” He scooped some pinkish sticky gel out of a jar with a wooden stick and spread it on the skin around the injury. Rey stifled a groan as the gel burned.

“A’chungaidh leighis is goirte, ‘si is moth’tha deaneamh feum,” the doctor murmured, his gaze flicking up to her face.

“The medicine that hurts-“ he began before Rey chimed in.

“-the most is the best healer,” they finished together. He quirked a half-smile at her that set her heart beating a little too fast.

“I hadn’t heard that saying in years, and you’re the second person to say that to me in the last 24 hours,” Rey mused. The doctor’s mouth tightened. He poked and prodded at Rey’s numb arm, tapping her elbow a few times with what looked like a tiny hammer.

“You said you got this injury last night?”

“Yeah, late last night.”

Dr. Ren pointed to the outside of the wound. “It looks like it’s almost a week old. The edges are already knitting together. And I see no evidence of broken bones.” Rey looked where he pointed. It did look like it was already healing. She opened and closed her mouth, mystified, and then shrugged.

“It certainly didn’t look like that last night, it was a mess.”

The doctor studied her face for a fleeting moment, expression inscrutable, before shifting his attention back to her arm. Rey stole glances at him while he stitched up the unhealed portion of her injury.

His face was confusing. At first pass, he seemed boyish. It might be his nose, which was just a fraction too large for his face and slightly crooked. Maybe it was his narrow chin and soft jawline, like he was still growing into his features. The boyishness was at odds with the shallow furrows along his forehead that lent a sense of maturity to his face, punctuated by angular eyebrows. When he tilted his head, his soft jawline sharpened. His full lips hinted at a perpetual pout. His high cheek bones were accented by the lush waves of his hair. Every time he moved into a beam of sunlight from the window behind Rey, she found another shade of golden brown in the flecks of his eyes. They locked gazes and heat shot through her. Rey felt the doctor’s hands on her arms slow, the pressure of his fingers the only thing she could feel on her numb skin. His gaze flicked to her lips before capturing her eyes again.

Suddenly, an unsettling pressure weighed on Rey’s mind and a dark voice whispered close to her ear. Startled, she broke their contact, head whipping around. “Did you hear that?”

He gave her a measured look, eyes thoughtful, before slowly shaking his head. His gaze dropped back to her arm as he resumed his work, pulling careful, immaculate stitches across her wound. Rey wondered if she imagined the tension.

“Your cloak is very unusual.” His tone was not judgmental but not exactly curious either.

“It’s a symbol,” Rey replied tensely.

“Of what?”

“My family. I come from a long line of shapeshifter hunters.”

The doctor’s mouth narrowed but his voice remained light. “Must have been a quiet last decade. Why red?”

Rey pursed her lips, deciding to give him the honest answer. “To represent the spilled blood of our enemies.”

His eyes widened slightly before he broke into a stunning smile. “That’s positively terrifying. I have pity for your enemies.” He was still smiling at her, a crooked, easy grin that soaked into Rey like the warmth of the sun. She couldn’t help but notice the way his full smile balanced his face. “Yeah, it really is,” she said with a sheepish chuckle. “We tend to keep that piece of information to ourselves.”

“Oh, so you don’t make a habit of sharing family secrets with strangers?” His lips twitched with a playful smile.

“Only the ones with pretty eyes.” The words were out before Rey could stop them. Dr. Ren’s eyes widened slightly before a rosy stain spread across his cheeks and the tops of his ears. Rey felt like he looked. He hurriedly tied off her last stitch and trimmed the thread, stepping away with his bloodied tools. Rey internally cursed, berating her forwardness. 

Kylo fumbled with his tools in the sink, briefly washing them with cold water from the small pump before wrapping them up and putting them in his bag to await sanitization. From behind him, Rey radiated so many heated emotions that he couldn’t settle on just one. Kylo’s own thoughts were in a snarl. He was elated just to be near her; her presence dug into him in a way nothing else did, shredding through his thoughts. He couldn’t believe she had been so close this whole time. They must have crossed paths at some point, a long time ago. What felt like a different lifetime. She immediately felt his mind probe, even with his lightest touch. She was more Force-sensitive than he thought. It wouldn’t be long now. Fresh anxiety gnawed at his stomach.

Rey pushed past her humiliation easily enough. She said something dumb and made the doctor uncomfortable. But he would be gone soon and she would never have to see him again, she told herself. Something about that almost disappointed her. The doctor rummaged through his bag and returned, kneeling on one leg. His blush was gone, except for the very tips of his ears. Again, some kind of pressure tickled Rey’s mind, just a tiny tug. Dr. Ren watched her, evaluating, his eyes barely leaving her face as he expertly wound stiff bandages around her arm, sealing the edge with a clear gel. His fingers lingered much longer than necessary, smoothing out imaginary bumps. _I couldn’t have upset him that much,_ Rey mused, her thoughts straying into dangerous places.

He pushed off the floor, towering over her. “Change the bandages once a day. Put this salve on the wound.” He handed her a bundle of the stiff bandages and a small jar. “You can skip the bandages once the stitches start to break apart, but use the salve until it’s gone. No lifting or strenuous activities with that arm for at least three weeks.”

Rey’s jaw dropped. “But this is my sword hand!”’

“It’s also your injured hand. Just stay out of trouble for a while,” said Dr. Ren with a small smirk that irked her. 

She hesitated for a split second. Something about Dr. Ren felt almost disorienting but somehow familiar too. “The Resistance is sending a delegation to Chathair. I’m in it.”

“I see.” He turned away, shuffling with items in his bag. When he turned back, his face was cold. “I’ll wish you safe travels and be on my way.”

His sudden change of tone unbalanced her. “How much do I owe you?” She winced at how much this visit would cost her.

A touch of warmth returned to his face. “No need. Consider this a thank you for keeping the town safe.” He strode out her door, shutting it a bit too hard. The thick feeling in the air disappeared with him.

Kylo stripped off the white shirt as he moved through the forest, throwing it and his bag into the underbrush, along with the sense of lightheartedness he felt with Rey. In the space of a step and a haze of light, he slipped into his canine form, the pads of his paws replacing the thunk of his heavy boots. It had taken him years of practice to master the art of taking physical possessions with him through the transition to wolf and back again, but it was one of the more useful things Snoke had taught him.

Kylo had lurked around Rey’s house all morning, then followed Finn into the village, hoping Hux wouldn’t send anyone looking for Kylo. The risk paid off when he overheard Finn giving a wizened doctor directions to Rey’s house. Kylo jumped at the opportunity. The doctor was dealt with easily enough. Kylo snorted at the irony of Finn’s choice. The old doctor was a spy, planted in the village to alert the First Order to existing shapeshifters or possible candidates. The harmless-looking old doctor was probably responsible for the death of shapeshifters who wouldn’t join the First Order, not to mention the children stolen from their families and then turned. Kylo didn’t waste remorse over his death.

After Rey was attacked the night before, Kylo paced for hours trying to figure out what to do about her arm. He cursed his own failure to get to the village before the rest of his pack. Hux didn’t ask when Kylo refused to go back with the rest of their force, he didn’t need to. Hux told him it was reckless. Kylo ignored him. 

Reckless or not, Kylo felt justified. The First Order doctor would have found Rey’s arm suspicious enough to report her and hand her over to Snoke. Kylo growled at the thought. He would kill the doctor a hundred times over if it meant hiding her from the Dark druid.

* * *

 

Rey tried to push thoughts of the doctor out of her mind as she packed and tacked up Evie. As she made her last pass through her house, her eyes alighted on two small carved figurines on her mantle. Gifts from her father on her seventh birthday.

_Rey’s small fingers tore at the brown paper of the package. “Careful,” her father admonished her, his gentle voice amused. Rey pulled two carved wolves from the wrappings. They were breathtakingly detailed, accurate to the soft strokes of their fur. One was painted black, one white. Rey’s hands froze on the figures and she stared at her father with a look that was both hurt and awed. He leaned towards her, brushing a calloused finger softly along the back of the white wolf._

_“I made these for you, to remind you that-“_

_He was interrupted by the horrified gasp of Rey’s mother. She ripped the figures from Rey’s grasp, roughly ushering Rey into her bedroom. “I need to talk to your father.” Her face was grim as she closed the door on Rey, who promptly jammed her face against the keyhole to watch them._

_“You are unbelievable,” her mother hissed._

_Her father didn’t answer, just thoughtfully turned the white wolf in his hands._

_“Desmond-“_

_“She’s going to know.”_

_Her mother shook her head, voice wavering, “I don’t want her to remember him that way.”_

_“Him,” being Desi. He was almost a year gone, but Rey felt his absence more keenly with each passing day. Her father took her mother in his arms, and their soft whispers dropped out of hearing range._

Rey’s mother didn’t give the figurines back. Rey thought she had destroyed them, until the day her parents disappeared. An eight year old Rey had woken up to an empty house and the figurines sitting on their table, a pendant on a necklace wound around the white wolf, and a note from her father.

_“Your enemies are not always who you believe them to be. Never forget who you are. Love you always.”_

The pendant was Desi’s, a combination of two glyphs—one for their family and one for Desi’s Resistance unit. He was wearing it the day he died. Rey rubbed the pendant where it lay just under the collar of her shirt. Something compelled Rey to tuck the wolves into the small satchel at her hip and her thoughts turned around them as she rode towards the village.

She found Agé-de in a flurry of activity and it took her a while to track down Finn. She called out to him and he craned his head around his enormous armful of bags and packages, grinning at the sight of her.

“Doc got your arm all patched up?”

“Stitched and bandaged, and totally useless,” Rey huffed. “Can’t barely use it for three weeks!”

Finn laughed at her grumpy expression. “That means no one will make you carry anything!” He continued past her, his pile tilted at a precarious angle. “That doctor got to you awful fast, I figured it would take the old man half the day to get out to your place at the rate he moved.”

Rey froze as alarm rippled through her. Finn didn’t notice, moving off with his armful of bags. Dr. Ren was definitely not an old man. Maybe the doctor had gotten someone else to see her instead. Rey shivered while she touched her bandages. She didn’t say anything to Finn as she followed him to the rest of the delegation, but she felt the doctor’s soft touches against her arm for the rest of the day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo I'm back! Sorry to my faithful readers who thought I abandoned them. Hopefully this chapter was worth the wait?


	14. Chapter 14

Poe Dameron was a damn good rider, and BB-8 was a damn good horse, but right now they needed wings.

Poe left his squire, Bryn, at a rendezvous point that was far behind them. As soon as General Leia got the message she sent out her fastest rider. Poe raced towards the tiny village of Baile, to meet with Lor San Tekka, an old ally of the Resistance who spent the last several months searching for a particular item. A map. If the General knew about the location of the map, then the First Order did too, or would very soon. Poe crouched low over BB-8’s neck, whispering encouragement and urging him faster.

It was nightfall by the time Poe rode up to Baile. It was barely more than a clump of buildings and houses in the woods. The town was quiet, and Poe rode through as discretely as he could, looking for a window lit with three candles and a red ribbon. He found it shortly, tying BB-8 up out front. The door opened before he could knock. A regal, white-haired man in dark brown robes motioned him in.

“Poe Dameron, your familiar face is a welcome sight,” Lor San Tekka said after he shut the door behind them.

“Likewise, San Tekka,” Poe responded as the men clasped forearms in greeting.

“We will not waste time with pleasantries,” San Tekka said as he produced a set of bizarrely shaped keys from his robes. He motioned to a floor board with his foot. “Help me with this.”

They two men pried the board loose and San Tekka pulled a box from the space underneath. The smooth stone of the box looked seamless, except for a series of complex crevices that Poe assumed match the strange keys. San Tekka carefully inserted and turned the keys one at a time. At the last key, the box issued a soft click, and a panel sprang open. San Tekka pulled a palm-sized leather portfolio out and handed it to Poe, who peeked inside at the thick square of folded vellum.

“The map to the Claiohm Solais,” San Tekka murmured.

Poe tucked the item into his breast pocket, leaning towards San Tekka. “Have you heard anything about Luke?”

The elderly man stroked his grizzled chin. “There were whispers, just rumors. But one source of mine, an archivist at the Chathair Libraries said a man had been to visit him, asking about the oldest Republic documents available, specifically those recovered from the druid archives.”

Poe broke in, “Their entire temple was burned to the ground when Palpatine seized control of the country and had all the Druids slaughtered. What could possibly have survived after all this time?

“I could not tell you, but Luke, if it was Luke, found something of interest, and made off with a sizeable collection of documents. The archivist was quite upset.” San Tekka smiled wanly.

Poe shook his head. “I don’t understand, what makes you think this man is Luke?”

“The documents contained writings that may hint to the location of the first Light druid temple. And the archivist said this man had an arm of ‘unnatural origins.’”

Poe’s response was interrupted by a high-pitched whinny from BB-8. He dashed out the door. The horse tossed his head, straining at his secured reins. The sounds of other alarmed animals rose throughout the village; dogs began to bark in earnest and oxen bellowed.

Poe’s head whipped to San Tekka. “You need to hide.”

“And you need to go.” San Tekka clasped Poe’s arm in a brief handshake. “Go! May the Force be with you.”

Poe untied BB-8 and leapt on. At the edge of the village, Poe spied bright lights sweeping through the forest, and the howl of wolves, no doubt the cause of the spooked village animals. He heard it before he felt it—the whine of an arrow flying through the darkness. Then his shoulder exploded with pain. A moment later all his muscles spasmed, and he tumbled off BB-8. Poe ripped the arrow out of his shoulder and examined it. His wound didn’t feel that big, but moonlight gleamed off a black, oily substance that streamed from needle-sized holes in the arrowhead. Poe cursed, throwing the arrow into some bushes. Poison. He could feel the second wave spreading through his body, a sluggish feeling that made him want to lay down and never get up. Even though he didn’t get the full dose, he would never be able to ride like this. “BB-8,” he rasped, hauling himself up. The horse stilled at his side, supporting Poe’s weight. Poe slipped the leather portfolio with the map out of his jacket pocket and into a saddle bag, exchanging it for his bow and arrows.

“Go to Bryn.” He couldn’t tell if BB-8 understood a word he said, but the horse fixed one eye on Poe’s face with a far too intelligent gleam. He let go of the saddle, slapping BB-8 on his hindquarters. The horse danced a few steps away and whined, distraught to leave Poe behind. “GO,” Poe bellowed. The horse dashed off into the darkness. Maybe BB-8 would wander through the woods until shapeshifters found him, but maybe he would return to the rendezvous point. Poe would probably never know.

He resisted the effects of the poison with all the strength he had, leaning against a tree and drew a concussive arrow, loosely knocking it to his bow. Then he waited.

The village came alive. Torches blazed, illuminating armed villagers hiding behind a line of makeshift barricades. Stormtroopers burst from the woods, their bulky armor clanking as they jogged in formation. Flametroopers shot burning arrows into buildings, the fuel containers bursting into flames upon impact. The villagers put up a good fight, but they were grossly outnumbered and under-armed. A tall commander in mirror-smooth armor glided around the village, instructing her troops to herd the villagers into a tight group. Poe heard a few soldiers call her “Captain Phasma.”

A broad figure atop a hulking black draft horse galloped into the village. When the rider dismounted and turned to survey the village, Poe glimpsed his helmet and visor. The animalistic, snout-like exterior combined with the sunken visor that recalled the vacant eye sockets of a human skull lent the wearer a chilling countenance. Poe recognized him immediately. Kylo Ren, darling of the First Order. He was infamous for his volatile temper and destructive rampages. His thoughts came to a halt when two Stormtroopers shoved Lor San Tekka towards Kylo Ren. Poe couldn’t make out the words they exchanged.

Suddenly, a beam of red ignited at Kylo Ren’s side. Poe gasped as Kylo Ren raised and swung his lightsaber, cutting through the village elder like he was paper-thin. He loosed his arrow at Ren’s back, hoping the explosion would compensate for his poison-hampered aim. The masked man whipped around, throwing out his arm. The arrow floated in mid-air, humming with energy. Two Stormtroopers ran towards Poe, roughly grabbing him and dragging him towards Kylo Ren. Poe’s legs buckled and he fell onto his knees. Ren crouched down in front of Poe with a studying tilt of his head.

“Who talks first? Do I talk first?”

“The old man gave it to you,” Kylo said with a touch of resignation, and possibly amusement. “Search him.” Kylo’s voice came out distorted and mechanical. Poe had never heard anything like it.

“It’s just very hard to understand you with all the…apparatus,” Poe wheezed out as the soldiers shoved their hands in places he would rather they not.

“Nothing, sir.”

 “Put him on a horse.”

“Sir, the villagers?” Phasma inquired.

Ren hesitated briefly, before answering in a detached tone, “Take the children and teenagers. Kill anyone who resists.” He stalked off, his heavy black cloak and paneled robes flaring around his legs. Someone stuck Poe with a fat needle, and he felt fresh poison seep through his body. The last thing he heard was the screams of the villagers as his mind fell into darkness. 


	15. Chapter 15

Bryn paced tiny trenches in the ground, anxious for Poe to return. Night fell and real fear grew in her middle. An hour turned into two, and still no Poe. After another hour, she began to feel sick.

Her horse’s head snapped up from where he dozed under a tree next to the road and his ears tilted in the direction Poe disappeared. He grew agitated, churning up the ground with his hooves. BB-8 burst from the darkness, stumbling to a halt with heaving labored breaths and lathered coat.

“Where’s Poe?” She grabbed BB-8’s bridle, repeating the question more out of panic than an expectation that BB-8 would open his mouth and tell her. BB-8’s head drooped at the mention of his rider’s name. The howl of wolves echoed through the woods and Bryn gulped. They needed to get out of here, Poe or no Poe.

A massive arrow flew out of the darkness, sinking into her horse’s chest with a sickening thud. He screamed and fell, blood gushing from his wound. Another arrow slammed into the ground, missing Bryn by inches. The First Order emblem was etched into the shaft. She threw herself onto BB-8 and he took off, hooves pounding on the packed earth. A third arrow came for her and this time it didn’t miss. Searing pain lanced through her chest as the arrowhead bit through flesh and bone. With every jostle and breath, the arrow grated against Bryn’s ribs. Her head grew light as she struggled to get enough oxygen. They flew through the night and the autumn air chilled the tears that slipped from her eyes as she prayed they both had enough strength to make it back.

* * *

Kylo Ren emerged from his interrogation tent slick with self-assurance. Poe Dameron didn’t break down during the round of physical torture that Hux facilitated, but he was no match for Kylo’s. It took him less than two minutes to get out of Poe what Hux’s men spent almost a whole day trying to get. Such a waste of time.

Hux waited by the door, looking his usual mix of slightly disgusted and irritated.

“The map is in the saddle bag of Poe’s horse, a buckskin with a bright orange saddle blanket. The horse escaped shortly before we arrived at Baile.”

Hux looked slightly more disgusted, an expression Kylo knew would be a grimace on anyone else.

“Well, he can’t have gotten far, and he can’t outsmart us. Have your Knights set a net, if the horse is still in the forest, we’ll soon have him.”

Kylo glared at Hux from beneath his mask. “A net is the only logical option, Hux, you don’t need to tell me what my own men should do.”

Hux flashed an icy smirk. “Your mind hasn’t exactly been present lately.”

Kylo grit his teeth but turned to leave. Hux gripped his forearm with a force belied by his fine-boned hand. His voice was low and icy. “If I remember correctly, your little girlfriend was seen in the company of the Resistance, including Poe. And the General. If we can’t acquire the map before it falls into Resistance’s hands, we are to destroy it and anyone associated immediately. Direct orders from Snoke.” Hux gave Kylo a knowing smirk.

Kylo didn’t know what to be mad about first—Hux’s condescension towards his connection to Rey, merely mentioning his mother, or the implication of Rey’s demise. He went with the last, growling at Hux, “You would like that, wouldn’t you?”

“This obsession of yours threatens the success of the First Order. Nothing is worth that.”

“Snoke seems to believe it is.”

Hux couldn’t disagree with him. Snoke’s obsession with finding the girl seemed one step lower than Kylo’s and he couldn’t understand why. They glared at each other for another second before Kylo ripped his hand out of Hux’s grip and stalked away.

* * *

Rey sat atop Evie, staring at the building Han and Leia disappeared into almost half an hour before.

“What’s taking them so long?” Finn was fidgety on his horse. Chewie muttered something under his breath about “least punctual person on the continent,” and Rey suppressed a giggle.

Han came striding out of the building, Leia on his heels. “Don’t go to Maz’s!”

Han turned to face her. “It’s faster!”

“It’s more dangerous! The forest is crawling with the First Order. If you get attacked, there is only one way to get out, and the route out is its own deathtrap. Do you plan to scale the cliffs like a goat?” Leia’s tone was scathing.

“Maz has an excellent lookout system, we can get out before any trouble hits.”

“So you _do_ think an attack is possible.”

Han shrugged, “I suppose, a lot of things are possible.”

“Yes, it would be possible for you to just do what I ask for once!”

They were both scowling now, Leia with hands planted on her hips. Han gave in first, throwing his hands up with a shrug.

“Fine, fine! No Maz’s.”

Leia watched him stomp away and climb on his horse, his grumbles peppered with significantly more curses than Chewie’s. Han kicked his horse into a fast trot without a single word to the rest of the delegation. Rey glanced over her shoulder as they rode out of the village. Leia was in the same spot, hands now wrapped consolingly around her middle.

The group was quiet as they rode at a clipped pace down the road. The quiet was broken by Finn’s increasingly frequent exclamations as he spotted a bright bird flitting through the trees or a fire-colored fox slipping through the underbrush. Chewie joined him, although his mumbled roars scared most of the wildlife off before anyone got a good look. Rey maneuvered Evie to ride up next to Han.

“What route are we taking?” She inquired.

“The fastest one.”

“But the General-“

“Doesn’t need to know.” Han shot Rey a look from beneath bushy eyebrows. “She’ll thank me when we get to the capital sooner.” Rey disagreed but kept that thought to herself.

“Besides, that’s where I told Poe to meet up with us right before he left this morning,” Han smirked before riding ahead of her.

Rey dropped back and Finn came alongside. “I’m starting to understand what Poe meant about Han and the General the other night.”

The rest of the day was uneventful. They kept a sharp pace and everyone was ready for their bedrolls that night when they set up camp. Rey’s sleep was restless, and not because of the cold, lumpy ground. She dreamed of hunting shapeshifters over and over. Every time she chased one down and raised her saber for a death-blow, the wolf transformed into a human. When the human turned to her, she was face-to-face with herself. The dreams left her with a roiling stomach and shaking limbs.

The next morning, Rey was already fall-asleep-in-the-saddle exhausted. Finn hovered near her all day with a worried brow. She rode in a haze, the country side passing in a blur. When her lids drooped shut she got a jabbing finger to her ribs followed with, “Hey, hey!”

“Stop. Stop poking me!” Rey shooed away Finn’s insistent jabs.

“You want to ride off a cliff?”

Rey roused herself, looking around. The group was headed up a steep switchback, hooves clattering over loose stones. They rode upwards for what seemed hours, weaving around sharp cliff-faces and at one point riding single-file along a narrow ledge. Finn looked a little green as he repeatedly glanced at the straight drop over the side of the ledge. The trees looked tiny below them and a river cut a glinting scar through the forest.

“Don’t look, you’ll get dizzy,” Rey told him.

“Too late.”

Rey threw him a sympathetic look.

“You’re not going to fall, you’re not going to fall,” Finn repeated behind her.

“I know I’m not going to fall.”

“I’m talking to myself. I really wish Han listened to General Leia,” he grumbled.

“But look at this view!” Rey teased.

“Do you want me to faint? I can do that. You’ll have to tie me to my horse.”

Rey just grinned at him until Finn made another face. Her smile faded as they rounded a bend and the rest of the delegation was gone.

“Whaa—“ Finn began.

“Hey, kid, don’t look so scared.” Han’s head popped out, seemingly from the cliff-side. Rey didn’t see the cave entrance until they were right upon it.

“Come on, time for a subterranean trek.”

The delegation passed a few torches amongst themselves. The light glittered off stalactites that nearly brushed their heads. Rey saw more than a few pale spiders and other unidentifiable creatures with far too many legs skitter away from the light and disappear into cracks. Rey pulled her hood over her head.

“What are you doing?” Finn asked from behind her.

She answered in a small voice. “I don’t want the bugs to fall on me.”

He burst out laughing, the sound echoing far into the cavern.

It was Rey’s turn to feel dizzy as Han led them up and then down and then up again, the tunnels winding the whole way.

Suddenly the tunnel opened up in a yawning cave, the roof disappearing into darkness. They halted for a break, members dismounting and shaking out their legs. Rey figured most weren’t used to long-distance rides and felt grateful for her messenger experience. While some members unpacked food, Rey took a torch and wandered over to one edge of the cave. It was unnaturally smooth, and crisscrossed with colorful marks. Rey raised her light closer; they weren’t just marks, but faded paintings. The thin, spindly style of the forms were both minimalist and emotive. Her eyes moved from scene to scene. One scene depicted a group of humans hunting deer, another illustrated a skirmish between two groups of brightly clothed warriors.

“Thousands of years ago, fierce clans ruled this area.”

Rey jumped at Finn’s voice, close to her ear as he peered at the paintings over her shoulder.

Finn pointed at several figures in the melee. They stood apart from the rest, fighting each other with long, thick blades. The blades were brightly colored, edges somewhat indistinct. “Each clan was usually led by several druids, more depending on the size of the clan.” He brushed a finger over a red blade. “The red blades were generally only used by the Dark Sith druids. They say druid lightsabers are never destroyed once forged. They simply pass from one druid to another over the ages. Some believe the sabers are called to certain druids, and will only light for the right one. Others say they only light for people with Force-sensitivity.” Finn shrugged. “Who can know? So many druids perished in the Empire’s purge.”

Rey smiled at Finn. “You’re quite the history-buff.”

Finn shrugged bashfully. “I find it interesting. My mother loved history, collected rare books.” His face tightened and he moved away. Rey was about to follow him when a cluster of figures far above her caught her attention. She raised on her tiptoes, straining to make out the scene.

Weapon-less humans ran towards the fray, several morphing into fuzzy clouds. Closer to the conflict, hulking wolves, sleek foxes, and some other creatures Rey couldn’t make out attacked a group of druids. Wide-winged eagles with wickedly curved talons flew overhead. Shapeshifters, Rey realized, her eyes growing wide. The druids being attacked all wielded lightsabers. Red lightsabers. Rey stumbled back from the scene, thoughts spinning. She rejoined the group as they remounted and continued into the tunnels. She rode in silence, mind clouded with questions from the implications of the paintings. _Just stories,_ she tried to convince herself.


	16. Chapter 16

Kylo looked through battle reports without really seeing any of the words. A knock sounded against the door to his tent.

“Enter.”

An officer stepped in, sketching a sharp bow. “Sir, good news. The horse and rider were sighted in the forest, headed for the Driisvtha Cliffs. The Resistance riding party was also seen headed that way.”

“The Driisvtha Cliffs,” Kylo mused. “There is only one place they could be going. Who’s in the party?”

“Han Solo, several cavalry members, two squires, a healer, a Wookie, and-“ the officer faltered. “The Stormtrooper who defected, FN-2187.”

Kylo interrupted with a roar, turning and flipping a large desk. It splintered when it hit the floor. Several chairs followed in its wake. The officer flinched, leaning away from his tirade. Kylo let out several heavy breaths. “Anything else?”

The officer’s voice was tight. “The group was accompanied by someone we didn’t recognize. Apparently not Resistance. A girl.”

Kylo whipped around, arm outstretched. The officer’s boots skidded across the ground as he flew towards Kylo. The smack of his throat hit Kylo’s palm was audible.

“What. Girl.”

“Don’t know,” the officer wheezed. “Red cloak. My men are investigating.”

Kylo threw the man aside, his lightsaber in his hand in a second, the crackling red blade exploding to life with a single thought. He raked the blade indiscriminately through tent walls, furniture, and ground, fury clogging his throat.

“I’m rather tired of submitting replacement requests on your behalf, Ren.” Hux’s cold voice cut through Kylo’s thoughts. He turned to see the officer sprinting out of the tent and a smug Hux examining his cufflinks.

“I heard your girl is truly with the Resistance now.” He tsked. “I’m sure you’ll have no trouble convincing her she belongs by your side. Or convincing Snoke she’s not a lost cause.”

Kylo strained to keep his fury from his voice. “She doesn’t know the truth yet. They’ll turn on her. I know they will. She’ll have nowhere to go.”

“That’s your plan? Desperation?”

Kylo shook, clenching his lightsaber. Hux’s eyes flicked nervously to the blade. “Snoke wants to speak with us.”

“Fine!” Kylo growled. He brushed past Hux without a glance, headed for the central tent dedicated to Snoke’s communications. He struggled to compose himself on the way, he knew any sign of agitation would just bring Snoke’s scrutiny down on him. He reached for the Force, the familiar sensation calming and centering him. He knew he shouldn’t be allowing the Light side to affect him that way, but it always worked to help him regain control. He hated it.

Hux had barely closed the tent door when Snoke’s form flickered into view, its eerie blue glow the only source of light in the dark room. He offered no greetings.

“The map may already be in the hands of the Resistance.” His voice was accusing. “If they find the Claiohm Solais, Luke Skywalker’s return will be close behind. You cannot even imagine the threat they will pose to us. It could mean the end of the First Order.”

“Supreme Leader, I take full responsibility,” Hux began.

“ _General,”_ Snoke roared, “our strategy must now change.”

“The weapon,” Hux said with obvious pride, “it’s ready. The Resistance is surely on their way to convince this mockery of a government to support them. It’s time to destroy the Republic.”

Kylo tamped down a thread of horror. Hux wanted to destroy the entire capital. _You’re responsible for the deaths of hundreds of people. Entire villages._ Kylo protested his own thoughts. _Only when they resisted our rule. And never children. I’ve never killed children._ Self-disgust curled inside him. _You’ve ripped them from home and family to live as shapeshifters. How is that better? You’ll accept any excuse to assuage your own conscience._ Kylo silenced his tumultuous thoughts before Snoke could catch them.

Snoke smiled, the expression gruesome on his mangled face. “Go,” he instructed Hux, pacified. “Oversee preparations.”

Snoke waited for Hux to exit before addressing Kylo. “There’s been an awakening. Have you felt it?”

Kylo hesitated. “Yes,” he answered simply.

“The Light side _and_ the Dark.” Snoke’s tone was almost gleeful. “This might be the one we have been searching for.”

“Perhaps, Supreme Leader. You would know better than I.”

Snoke’s eyes narrowed as he continued. “If you do not reach the rider with the map first, it will fall into the hands of the Resistance party. Into the hands of your father.”

“He means nothing to me.”

Snoke didn’t look convinced. “We shall see. We shall see.” His voice echoed as his image disappeared, leaving Kylo in the dark. He clenched his hands, his cool disappearing. Snoke never offered encouragement to Kylo, just endless doubt. It didn’t matter how much territory Kylo conquered or destroyed, Snoke’s attitude always implied Kylo was just one difficult situation away from betraying him and turning from the Dark side. An increasingly loud voice inside Kylo suggested Snoke was right. Kylo growled. He had to find a way to prove Snoke wrong. _Or to prove yourself wrong?_ The voice murmured to him.

Kylo retreated to his tent, pacing before settling on his cot, facing a pedestal, and a mangled helmet warped from the heat of a fire. They belonged to his grandfather, Darth Vader. No one in his family ever wanted to talk about him and Kylo never understood why, until he joined Snoke. It was Snoke who told him that Darth Vader’s quest to destroy all Light druids and expand the reach of the Empire was ended by his very own son, Luke. He told him Luke rejected his father long before their last fight, never able to look past Darth Vader’s own shapeshifter nature. Luke had killed him.

“Shapeshifters are creatures of the Dark side,” Snoke had told him. “Your grandfather understood this better than any, and came into his full power when he embraced his true nature. Why do you think your family sent you away? They couldn’t face the fact that their own son was a shapeshifter. They were ashamed. But Darth Vader—he would be proud to call you his own.”

Kylo wished daily that he could meet his grandfather, that he could study under him. He wanted to make him proud. Now he felt he was failing.

He stared at the mask, searching for something, anything. A spark of inspiration, a call from the Dark side. But the grotesque countenance just stared back at him.

* * *

Not long after Rey sighted her hundredth spider, they exited the caves, eyes burning in the late afternoon sunshine. Below them, an enormous castle sat atop a small hill in the wide, lush valley. Rey began to smile as she took in the turrets, towers, and sculpted forms of the castle.

“The Kanata Castle. I’d heard about the castle in the Driisvtha Cliffs,” she remarked, awed. “It’s real. Isn’t it supposed to be enchanted?”

Han grunted. “Enchanted. Ha! Say that to Maz. She gets a kick out of it every time.” Han watched Rey’s eyes wander over the rings of cliffs that circled the valley. “You look like you’ve never seen the Maze Cliffs before.”

“I haven’t. Never had a reason to.” Han squinted at her. “Your parents never brought you? Resistance was here a lot. I could have sworn…”

Rey shrugged. “If they did, I was too young I guess.”

From this vantage point, Rey could see where the Driisvtha Cliffs got their name. They looked exactly like the maze puzzles her father used to draw for her when she was a child.

“Han.” She attempted a patient tone. “I thought the General said there was only one way in and out. I can definitely see about four. Not including the way we just got in,” she finished with a pointed look.

He shifted in his saddle, rubbing the back of his neck. “Eehhhh, technically, yes. But don’t plan on using any of them without help.”

Finn chimed in. “Stormtroopers were expressly forbidden from entering these cliffs without a guide. The entrances look more obvious from here, but when you’re actually in the Driisvtha Cliffs, you’ll get lost within minutes. An admiral got a little cocky one time, decided he wanted to impress Kylo Ren by taking a shortcut and getting back faster. One man made it back, weeks later and half-dead from starvation.”

“What about those caves we just came through?” Rey directed the question to Finn, but he shrugged.

“Smuggler caves. Less likely to get through those without help than any other part of the Driisvtha Cliffs.”

“Why would anyone build a castle here?” Rey’s curiosity was piqued.

“No one gets in or out without Maz seeing it. This place has been in Maz’s family for a thousand years. Used to be a tiny nation. She’s actually royalty, if the Republic still recognized Kanata’s autonomy.” Han frowned and Rey got the impression that Han didn’t appreciate the Republic very much. Finn’s words about the unrest in the North came back to her. What if the Republic’s authority was more tenuous than anyone suspected?

The group painstakingly picked their way towards the castle down another rocky switchback. When they reached the bottom, Han turned to instruct the group.

“Let me do the talking. The rest of you, whatever you do, don’t stare.

“At what?” Finn and Rey asked in unison.

“Any of it.”

They dismounted, and Chewie and Quree, one of the two squires along to manage the supplies, gathered their horses, leading them towards the stable. Han strode up the wide stone steps and pushed open enormous wooden doors inlaid with intricate carvings. Rey stepped inside, blinking as her vision adjusted to the dark interior.

She was immediately grateful for Han’s warning. Even in all her messenger travels, she had never seen such a riotous collection of humans. Rough mercenaries gambled over pazaak with Danu priests. Tradesmen from the Southern Isles in their brightly patterned garb entertained a group of woodsmen with outrageous stories. Farmers and wealthy landlords drank companionably next to each other. The smoke of some decidedly unlawful substances rose from the pipes of more than one group. Lively music came from a band that hooted and twanged instruments Rey had never seen before.

“HAN SOLO.” The bellow came from a wizened old woman with comically large spectacles. Dozens of bronzed bracelets rattled on her arms as she scurried their way.

“Maz! It’s so good to see you.”

“Where’s my boyfriend?”

Han chuckled. “Chewie’s out back, getting the horses settled.”

“I like that Wookie.” She sighed. “I assume you need something, desperately.”

Han chuckled. “Not this time, although I could use a drink.”

Maz eyed their group. “You all look like you could use drinks.” She jerked her head towards an open table, flicking a series of gestures at a server. “Let’s get to it.”

The group sighed and groaned at their sore muscles and aching backsides as they settled into heavy wooden chairs. Rey traced her fingers along the table, a thick cross-section from an enormous tree topped with a heavy glaze.

“This tree must have been hundreds of years old.”

“It was,” Maz piped up over her shoulder. “An unnaturally large afal blossom tree, my mother’s favorite. She and my father got into a row one day and he ordered it cut down.” Maz mused, nostalgic. “He had a bit of a temper, my father. My mother was furious. She cried for days. He felt so bad he turned the entire thing into various pieces of furniture. My mother didn’t find it very comforting.” Maz smirked, then bustled away, returning with the server in tow, both carrying trays loaded with drinks and steaming dishes. Rey’s stomach growled in anticipation.

The server plunked large glasses of clear liquid before them. Rey recognized the light spicy-sweet scent that rose from her glass.

“Oh thank god, I’m parched,” Finn exclaimed, taking a deep sip.

“NO, Finn that’s not-“

He spewed out the enormous mouthful, choking and coughing.

“Water,” Rey finished lamely. Han burst out laughing, thumping Finn on the back as he continued to cough and tears streamed from his eyes. Rey handed him a glass of actual water which he gulped down.

“What was that?” Finn rasped.

“Nim. You’ve never had it?” Rey took a small sip. The liquid burned down her throat, leaving a warm trail behind. “This is quality stuff,” she complimented Maz, who smiled at her.

“That’s because I make it myself.”

“Takes like poison,” Finn said, shuddering. “You can drink mine.” He slid his glass towards Rey, who happily accepted.

Maz and Han exchanged news from the countryside while the rest filled up on food and drink. Maz eyed her all throughout dinner. After several helpings, Rey leaned back in her seat and groaned. “I feel like I’m going to pop,” she announced, patting her stuffed belly. Maz leaned forward over the table, peering intently at her. The old woman turned her head this way and that, eyes never leaving Rey’s face. Rey shifted in her seat.

“You live long enough, and you begin to see the same eyes in different people. I know your eyes.” Maz leaned back. Her statement hung in the air, unexplained. Slightly disturbed, Rey excused herself, citing a need to use the washroom. She followed signs up a floor and around a corner, relieved to shut the door behind her. Her bandage was itching, and she unwound it for a quick wash. She pulled the stiff fabric away and gasped. Stunned, she ran fingers over smooth, unblemished skin. Even the stitches were gone. She felt panicky, pressing her fingers against her arm harder, searching for a tender spot. There was nothing. The doctor’s questions about the age of the wound and his knowing, curious looks came back to her. She hastily rewound the bandages. _Too much Nim. I’m drunk. This isn’t real._ She stumbled out of the washroom to find Finn and show him her arm. He would definitely tell her she was imagining things.

The hallway outside the washroom swam in her vision. _Okay, I didn’t have_ that _much Nim._ In her periphery, a moppy head of sandy blond hair darted past. She whipped her head towards the movement to catch sight of a boy disappearing around the corner at the end of the hall. Her stomach lurched. “Desi,” she breathed. She didn’t know if she believed in ghosts, but she followed Desi’s specter up flights of stairs and through dark hallways. He slipped through a door which closed behind him. The handle was locked when she yanked on it, but a soft click issued, and the door creaked open on its own. Inside the room, dust danced in tiny blades of sunshine that shone through a few narrow arrow slits. A hammered copper box gleamed in the afternoon light. Drawn towards it, she slid her fingers along the cold edges and eased the lid open. A saber hilt shone softly, its surface wound with intricate designs and complex glyphs she didn’t recognize. As if outside her body, she watched her hand lift the hilt out. A long, blue blade thrummed to life, and she was cast into darkness.

The world lurched beneath her. Tilted stone walls towered around her. Far away, a cold mechanical voice: “ _I_ am your father.” The ground fell away, voices whispering around her. She tumbled, hitting grass. In front of her was Desi, blood on his face, saber raised in front of him. “Monster!” He screamed at someone behind her. Darkness fell, Desi disappeared. The black wolf from the village stood between the trees, a full moon gleaming off his ebony coat. His form flickered, exchanging with the silhouette of a tall man. The build of his shoulders tickled her memory. She scrambled to her feet. Daylight. A hulking figure in black stepped around a rocky outcropping, masked and brandishing a red lightsaber. The forest spun around her, colors smearing.

“Never forget, Rey,” Her father’s voice, echoing through the forest. “Never forget…” Ahead, her parents shouldered packs, stepping from the house of her childhood and melting into the darkness.

“Don’t go!” She called after them, voice breaking. The world spun again. Smoke choked her. The same masked figure advanced towards her, flames crackling around him. A burning tree fell between them. The flames were replaced with the coolness of a stone building and a low ceiling. She kneeled next to a stone altar, arms outstretched on top. A pair of masculine hands were clasped tight against her own and deep purple flames licked around their tightly interwoven fingers with an otherworldly light. She wrenched away, shaking her hands and stumbling backwards, right out of the door of the room. The lightsaber fell from her grasp as she hit the stone floor. It clattered away, blue blade extinguished. Maz appeared beside her, kneeling down.

“What was that?” Rey gasped, tears running down her face.

“That lightsaber, it belonged to Luke, and his father before him, and now it calls to _you.”_

Rey shook her head violently. “No, no. Luke is a druid. His father was a _shapeshifter.”_ She wiped tears from her face. “This is wrong, I shouldn’t be here, I need to go home. My family, we’re not, we’re not, I can’t,” she stuttered, cutting short when Maz reached out and took her bandaged arm, beginning to unwind the bandages. Rey snatched her arm away, but Maz gave her a look as if to say _I don’t even need to see your arm._ Rey yanked her sleeve further down, but Maz grasped her hands in a calming hold.

“Dear child, I see your eyes. You already know the truth of yourself.”

“No, _no._ I don’t know what you mean.” Rey almost meant it. Maz leaned closer, compassion on her face. “The belonging you seek is not behind, it is ahead. I’m no druid, but I know the Force, it moves through and surrounds every living thing. Close your eyes, feel it, the Light-it’s always been there; it will guide you.” Maz squeezed her hand. “The coming days will test you. You must be wary of whom you trust. Many will abandon you. But there is one who never will.”

Rey shook her head. “I don’t understand.”

“You will, in time. The saber, take it!”

Rey jumped to her feet. “I’m never touching that thing again!” She rushed off down the hall, pushing past Han and Finn without meeting their eyes. The two looked questioningly at Maz, who sighed and picked the lightsaber off the floor.

“Where did you get that?” Han’s voice was grave.

“A good question, for another time.” Maz held the lightsaber out to Finn.

“Take the lightsaber. Find your friend.” Finn accepted the lightsaber, regarding it reverently. Maz wrapped a wiry hand around Finn’s wrist, pulling him close. “You keep an eye on her. The First Order will be after her. You must keep her away from them at all costs. Her decisions may trouble you. Trust her.” Finn opened his mouth to question her, when the ground rumbled and shook beneath them. Alarmed, the three looked at each other. Maz dashed away, throwing open a narrow door in the middle of a hallway. Finn stepped through to see half a dozen flights of stairs, and Maz nearly at the top. He and Han pounded after her. They reached a lookout tower in the top of a tall spire. Far in the distance, a huge plume of smoke rose from the horizon. Maz pulled a spyglass out of her pocket, training it on the smoke. Grimly, she handed it to Finn, whose face blanched when he focused the device. “That’s the capital. That _was_ the capital. I can’t see anything but smoke. The whole area, it’s just—burned up.” He looked at Han and Maz, horrified. “The First Order, they’ve done it. They’ve destroyed the Republic. What kind of weapon could possibly do that?” Maz and Han didn’t have an answer.

Rey sprinted out of the castle, plunging into the woods. She ran heedlessly until her lungs burned and her legs ached, leaping over logs and brush, yanking her cloak when it snagged. She didn’t stop until a cliff loomed up ahead of her. She wilted against a fallen tree, shaking. She didn’t want to think about her healed arm. She didn’t want to think about her disturbing dreams and strange visions. She didn’t want to think about Maz’s words. Echoing noises pulled her out of her thoughts. She followed the sounds along the cliffs, the path through them weaving and turning. The noise intensified, and a horse with a rider slumped over his neck careened around a corner towards her. She recognized him. “BB-8!” He stopped in front of her and she grabbed his bridle. Darkened blood ran down his neck, staining his coat all the way to his hooves. A large, black-shafted arrow protruded from the rider’s back. Rey gingerly laid a hand against her shoulder. The rider gasped, lifting her face. Rey recognized her as a squire from the Resistance.

“Bryn!” Rey helped pulled Bryn off BB-8’s back, propping her up against her own body, careful not to jostle the arrow.

“Where’s Poe? What happened?”

“Poe’s gone,” Bryn gasped out. “First Order…attacked.” Blood gurgled in her throat and sprayed out, flecking her face. She grabbed the front of Rey’s tunic with one hand, pulling a small leather packet out of her jacket pocket with the other. “The map. Get…to…General.” Rey grabbed the map right before Bryn’s hand dropped, and she slumped against Rey, who carefully laid her down on one side. Bryn twisted her head to look at her. Tears streamed from her eyes.

“Tell Poe I’m sorry.”

Rey cradled the woman’s face in her hands. “No, don’t be sorry. You brought the Resistance the map. You did it. Do you understand? I’ll make sure they know. And we’ll find Poe. I’ll find Poe. I promise you.”

Bryn’s face relaxed. “Thank you,” she whispered. Her body went limp as the life bled out of her.

Rey shut Bryn’s eyes, drawing glyphs for the afterlife around her. The second time she’d done that in the last few days. Two times too many, Rey thought. She got up, laying a hand on BB-8’s neck and wiping tears away. She looked at the leather envelope, hesitating, before sliding out the map and carefully unfolding the parchment. 

The map was confounding. The landmass didn’t match any map she’d seen. She recognized very few of the words denoting the regions and countries. Intricate glyphs were crammed into every available space. The map itself was crisscrossed with dashed and dotted lines in a dozen different colors. They intersected at a point, twisting around each other and melding together, the lines shaping into a creature. Rey squinted and held the map closer. Two creatures, she realized, wolves, one white, one black. They stood facing each other, each one’s head resting on the other’s neck. Her father’s wolf carvings flashed into her mind.

The ground shook. For a second, Rey almost panicked, thinking she was back in another vision. But her surroundings didn’t change, save for a wide column of dark smoke that rose into the sky beyond the cliffs. It was in the direction of the Chathair. In fact, exactly where Chathair would be. Now Rey did panic. She shoved the map into a pocket and hoisted Bryn’s body onto BB-8’s back with much effort, climbing on behind. She couldn’t just leave her body there. She started back towards the castle, hoping she was headed the right direction through the densely wooded area. The trees thinned, and Rey sighed with relief when she saw the castle towers over the tops of the branches. She reached the doors just as Han and Finn were running out, the rest of the delegation in tow.

“Rey!” Finn ran towards her, jaw dropping when he recognized BB-8 and saw Bryn’s body.

“Help me with her.” They carried her body towards the castle, laying her on the steps. “They found their way through the cliffs, somehow. She didn’t last much longer. But she did give me this.” Rey handed the map to Han, who tucked it away without hardly looking at it. Just as Maz joined them, alarm bells tolled in the distance.

“The outer rim of watch towers,” Maz informed them. With distressing speed, more bells sounded, each round louder and closer than before. “And the inner rings as well.” Maz spun and yelled at several of the staff and nearby guards, shouting for them to take up arms. She turned back to their group. “Those beasts,” she fumed. “They’re here. You all need to hide.” She gestured past the castle grounds. “Head west. When you enter the cliffs, take a right, then a left, then another right. You’ll see a boulder with red flowers growing on a bush against one side. Behind the bush is small hole. Stick your hand in, pull the latch. There’s a secret tunnel. Follow it out.”

“Maz, why didn’t you ever tell me about it?” Han seemed slightly hurt.

“If I did, _he_ would know about it, eh? You’d all be dead. Now go! May the Force be with you.” Maz left, a group of her soldiers descending upon her for instructions. As they headed west, Rey wondered who the “he” was.

“Can we get the rest of the horses?” Rey shouted to Han over the growing din, who was towing BB-8 behind him.

“No time kid! They’ll be fine. Maz can handle herself.”

As they ran, Stormtroopers jogged into the valley from two of the maze-like entrances. Rey glanced up at the tunnel the Resistance group entered from and saw dozens of shapeshifters streaming from the opening. A tall figure atop a massive black horse cantered down the slope at an appalling speed. She kept expecting the horse to stumble, but it never did.

Arrows screamed down between them, forcing the group farther apart. Finn tried to dodge the arrows and get to Rey’s side, but a series of small explosives fell between them, throwing up dirt and debris. Rey went flying with the impact, breath knocked out of her. She rolled to her feet, saber drawn. Regardless of how her arm healed, Rey was grateful she had full use of it again. She ran towards the trees, hoping they’d give her some cover. She heard Finn shouting for her.

“Go Finn! I’ll meet you there!” She bellowed as loudly as she could, unable to see him in the smoke. She wove from tree to tree, wheeling around as more arrows and explosives fell. She tried to keep west, but the onslaught forced her in the wrong direction.

* * *

Kylo Ren stood at the exit of the tunnel, watching his Knights bound down the hillside, yipping and barking with excitement. He was communicating visual directions to the rest of his Knights in the tunnel, while also monitoring the growing mayhem in the valley. It left little mental room to search for Rey.

 _Sir, the horse._ The voice of one of his Knights came to him dimly, fragmented, a consequence of being in his human form. _Spotted west with Resistance. His rider—missing._ Kylo waited for more. _Girl in red too._ Kylo’s head whipped west. _Drive her eastward,_ he sent to his Knights. _Pursue the rest of the group as well_ , he added as an afterthought. It would take a few minutes for them to transition to human form and relay the instructions to the rest of the troops. He kicked his horse down the hill, heedless of their breakneck speed down to the valley. He saw a number of the catapults and archers aiming in a distinct pattern that moved faintly eastward and he smiled beneath his mask. By the time he hit the bottom, the rest of his Knights were out of the caves, and he could focus all of his attention on finding Rey. Her familiar tug settled around him, and he let it guide him into the trees.

Rey yanked her saber from the chest of the fifth Stormtrooper she’d killed. They all seemed intent on pushing her eastwards, widening the distance between her and the rest of the Resistance group. After a few quiet minutes she heard a horse stomping through the underbrush. The horse’s hooves stopped, followed by the heavy thud of a rider jumping from its back. The crashing continued, from human feet now. A sparking, crackling noise that sounded vaguely like the lightsaber she found in the castle joined the thudding footsteps. Fear gripped her and she picked up her pace through the forest, heading for the cliffs in the hope she could lose her pursuer. She looked over her shoulder and nearly froze with shock. It was the masked man from her vision, holding a red lightsaber. The blade crackled and buzzed as he slashed through anything in his way. She reached the cliffs, following the edge around sharp bends. She turned a corner and her heart sank. It was a dead end. Cursing herself for not keeping the lightsaber that Maz offered her, Rey pulled several daggers loose and waited for the man to appear. He turned the corner, and with an expert flick of her wrist, Rey sent the razor-sharp blade whirling towards him. He batted it away with a lazy swing of his saber. She threw dagger after dagger as he moved towards her, his movements almost leisurely. He deflected each dagger with precision, slicing them in mid-air with needlessly complex twirls. One arm reached towards her, fingers outstretched. An invisible force seized Rey, freezing her in place. She strained against it, barely able to wiggle her shoulders. Terror welled inside her as the man stopped in front of her.

“The girl I’ve heard so much about.” Beneath the strange, warped effect created by the mask, his voice was calm, calculating, and carried a perplexing hint of wonder. He took several steps closer, now within arm’s length of her. Rey continued to struggle against the invisible hold. He looked her up and down, then stepped around her, out of her sight.

“The horse and rider with the map.” His lightsaber was suddenly hot at her neck, crackling in her ear. “Where are they?”

When Rey was silent, he stepped back in front of her, his gloved fingers hovering near her face, and a sharp force prickled into her mind. She fought the sensation, but it intensified. Her features screwed up in pain and concentration as her memories of the last few hours blinked through her mind.

“The map,” he breathed. “You’ve seen it.” He sounded almost excited.  Rey blinked at him with teary eyes, perplexed.

“Sir!” Kylo’s head turned towards the voice of the Stormtrooper and he stepped out of sight. “We’ve lost track of the Resistance party and the horse.”

“Pull the division out,” he commanded. “We have what we need.” Rey’s vision grew dim, and she started to fall towards the ground, before strong arms caught her and lifted her with ease. Inexplicably, her terror dropped away as she slid into a peaceful sleep.


	17. Chapter 17

Finn was the last through the entrance to the secret tunnel. He hovered, begging Han to wait just another minute, while he frantically scanned the area for Rey. Han yanked on his arm again, Finn shook him off.

“We have to go, _now._ ”

“I won’t leave without Rey.”

“Kid, we’re all going to die if we sit here much longer.”

“Then go, leave me here.”

Han paused, as if considering Finn’s offer, then sighed. “Nope, Leia would kill me. Come on.” Han pulled on Finn’s arm again, but the younger man hauled Han closer to the opening, shoving his face out the entrance and pointing wordlessly at the hillside. His finger trembled and his mouth hung open. Han followed his gaze and his words died on his lips.

Kylo Ren urged his horse up the hillside back to the entrance of the smuggler tunnels. Cradled against his chest was a figure swathed in crimson. Rey’s wide cloak spilled over the side of Kylo’s horse, looking like a smear of blood against the black coat.

Finn darted from the tunnel. Han’s reach was a second too late, his hand grasping at air as Finn barreled towards the hillside, bellowing Rey’s name with desperation. Han growled and dashed after him, practically tackling him to the dusty ground.

“Get it together kid! You can’t help her now.” Finn fought Han for a few seconds, then stilled, allowing Han to drag him back to the tunnel. Tears shimmered in his eyes as he stared over his shoulder at Rey until the door to the tunnel grated shut behind them. Everyone was quiet as they hurried through the tunnels.

“We have to go get her.” Finn’s tone was resolute.

Han dismissed Finn with a wave. “We don’t even know where they’re taking her. Forget it.”

Finn hesitated before speaking up. “I do.”

Nettrik, one of the Resistance cavalry members scoffed. “How could you possibly know that?”

Finn was silent for a moment, studying the ground. “I was a Stormtrooper.”

That got everyone’s attention and they all stopped. Chewie let out a garbled bark and Nettrik hissed, moving menacingly towards Finn. Han cut him off, stepping protectively in front of Finn.

“Explain yourself, kid,” Han tossed over his shoulder.

Finn gulped. “I ran away.”

Nettrik’s brows came up, before his surprise was replaced with vague admiration, followed by another scoff. “Unlikely, no one escapes the First Order.”

Finn scowled. “Well I did.” He turned around and pulled down the collar of his shirt, exposing the large black tattoo inked just below the nape of his neck. Several people emitted small gasps when they recognized the symbol of the First Order. He then shoved up the sleeve of his shirt, revealing the hastily tattooed characters on the inside of his forearm.

“FN-2187,” Nettrik read softly.

“Why didn’t you tell us before?” The question came from Stryker, another cavalry member. But her tone was curious, not accusing.

“If even the tiniest whisper of my whereabouts reached the First Order, even a rumor, they would tear apart the countryside looking for me. They’ve destroyed villages for less. There’s a reason nobody defects.” A wave of guilt rolled through Finn. _This is still all my fault._

“But you did,” Stryker said, her face hopeful. “That means others can too.”

“Maybe,” Finn replied, sounding unconvinced.

Nettrik’s gaze swept the rest of the group, who were all attentively watching Finn. “So where are they going?”

“First Order base. It’s farther south and due west of Lios. I’m sure that’s where they’re going.”

Stryker groaned. “Exactly the opposite direction of the Resistance base.”

“I can guarantee they have Poe there by now.”

Stryker’s face was pale. “Poe knows far too much. With the Republic and Chathair gone, the Resistance is an open target. They won’t have trouble finding our base.”

Nettrik snorted. “They can torture Poe all they want. He would never break.”

Finn grimaced. “They wouldn’t even need to torture Poe. Kylo Ren could get anything out of him with enough time.”

Nettrik raked his hand through his straight blond hair, which was matted to his head with sweat. “What a mess.”

The group exchanged troubled looks, then all looked to Han, who sighed heavily. “Kerric, when we get out of these blasted tunnels, wherever that might be, I want you to head to the nearest Resistance cell. Find a horse any way you can. We need to get an alert out.” Kerric, a shorter woman with springy dark curls and slanted brown eyes, nodded somberly. Han addressed Finn. “Could you get us into the First Order base?”

Finn nodded, but looked a little uncertain. “They place is cloaked and guarded heavily with wards. If enough people try to breach them at once, we should be able to temporarily break through. It’ll hurt like hell though.”

Han surveyed the rest of the group. “Anyone who doesn’t want to go can accompany Kerric.”

“I’m in,” Stryker announced without hesitation.

“Me too,” Nettrik chimed in. “Poe would do it for us in a heartbeat.”

“So would Rey,” Finn added. The rest of the group voiced agreement to the rescue mission one by one.

Han flashed a grin at Chewie. “Just like old times.”

* * *

A heavy thud woke Rey and her eyes flew open. Instinctively, she yanked at the thick manacles encircling her wrists and ankles. A large lamp hanging from the ceiling cast flickering, yellow light over a small cell with smooth stone walls and a low ceiling. The stones were free of mold and the ceiling sootless, but a bone-chilling dampness permeated the air. She shivered; they had taken her cloak. The lamp revealed a shadowy form in one corner. The masked man. He sat on his heels in front of her, hands resting on his knees. His hood was pulled back and the light illuminated the scratches and dents in the softly gleaming leather.

She glared at him, jerking at her restraints again. “Where am I?” She demanded.

The mask tilted, his voice almost amused. “You’re my guest.” Rey imagined a villainous smirk under the mask.

“Where are the others?”

His tone was dark and measured. “You mean the traitors, murderers, and thieves you call friends? You’ll be relieved to hear I have no idea.”

Rey glowered at him, but did feel somewhat relieved. The man tilted his head again. “You still want to kill me.”

“That happens when you’re being hunted by a creature in a mask,” she retorted.

Without hesitation, the man pressed latches on either side of his mask and the bottom of the long visor shifted with a mechanical click. He pulled it off and stood in one smooth motion.

Deep sable eyes set in a pale face met her. The face of the man who haunted her thoughts since he first appeared in her doorway.

“ _You,_ ” she snarled. Fury heated her veins even as shock and bewilderment rushed through her. Kylo’s lips played at a smirk. Her mind scrambled. Dr _._ _Ren_. Realization hit. Her “doctor” was none other than Kylo Ren. Nausea rose in her throat as she remember the soft touch of his hands on her arms. She wondered how many lives his hands had ended.

He slammed his helmet down into a shallow stone basin. and took two swaggering steps towards her, hands clasped casually behind his back. Her gaze flitted to his face before she dragged it away.

“Tell me about the horse and rider,” he asked in a detached tone, like she really was just a prisoner he plucked from the woods and not the girl whose arm he mended with painstaking stitches.

“Bryn is dead,” Rey said flatly. “You killed her.”

“I did not kill her,” he argued, tone taking on a chill.

“Not personally.” Loathing dripped off her words and she saw Kylo’s jaw clench out of the corner of her eye.

“They were carrying a map to the Claiohm Solais, and somehow you managed to get to it.” He didn’t understand how Bryn both escaped his men and survived the grueling ride to Maz’s with an arrow in her back. Quiet thoughts of Force intervention wormed into his mind. He felt like lately everything was working against him, and his calm started to leak away. He doubted she would give him the information he wanted and he’d have to wade through her mind. It would hurt her.

Rey stared at him defiantly, silent. He stepped closer. His eyes swept her form and she shivered. “You know I can take whatever I want,” he told her in a husky whisper that was half-threat, half-boast. Heady power buzzed down Rey’s spine and heat pooled between her thighs. She reeled from her own reaction.

Kylo bent over her and raised one gloved hand towards her face, his body curling around her. It smelled faintly of fresh leather, horse, and dirt. Like in the forest, a slicing force pushed into her mind, swelling hard. The pressure squeezed gasps from her. She turned her head, pulling as far away from him as possible. His hand tickled against escaped strands of hair.

“You’re so lonely,” he murmured. “So afraid to leave.” His velvety voice was too soft, too gentle, for what he was doing to her mind. “At night, desperate to sleep, you imagine an ocean. I see it, I see the island.” A hint of wonder crept into his voice, hardening on his next words. “And Han Solo – you feel like he’s the father you lost. He would’ve disappointed you.”

“Get out of my head,” Rey hissed. He stepped back and some of the pressure receded with him. She gathered herself, shutting down her thoughts one at a time. They blinked out until just one reminded: s _tay out._

“I know you’ve seen the map. It’s in there. And now you’ll give it to me.” The pressure fell again, greater than before. Rey gasped and gritted her teeth against the pain. Like in her home, dark voices whispered in her mind, and a force greater than them both loomed just out of reach, threatening to consume them. He narrowed his eyes, realization clicking into place. “Don’t be afraid, I feel it too,” he whispered. His eyes were honest and clear for the first time since he’d removed his mask. Rey ignored his remark, filing his words away for later thought.

“I’m not giving you anything,” she forced out.

He nearly smirked. “We’ll see.” His arrogance infuriated her, and she used it to bolster her strength, pushing back against the constricting pressure. He took a menacing step closer, lip twitching. Rey railed against his hold, feeling him lose ground. His arrogance faded, and fear crept into his eyes. Rey no longer shrank away from him, but strained forward against her bonds, growing calmer by the second. Kylo’s hand began to tremble. The pain rolled off her like water on wax and she pushed against the tender cracks in his force on her mind. He gritted his teeth and Rey shoved even harder. Suddenly a hole blew open between them. It buffeted Kylo like a physical force and he swayed. Thoughts and images flooded into her mind, each one coated and dripping with a dozen conflicting textures. Out of the torrent, one singular thought glowed red hot among the others. She seized it.

“You,” she breathed. “You’re afraid – that you will never be as strong as Darth Vader.” The gate between them slammed shut in a stunning blow and Kylo shrank back with shaking breaths, fear and dismay naked on his face. Rey stared, expression triumphant and a little awed. He snatched his helmet from the basin and rushed away, the cell door clanging behind him.

Rey’s head fell back onto the hard wooden rest. In the back of her mind, a searing knot throbbed. It didn’t feel physical, and Rey attributed to the bizarre mental warfare. Her eyes slid shut and she drifted into a half-sleep, drained. She suspected Kylo wouldn’t be back for a while.

Kylo shoved his mask on and stormed down the hallway, cutting into an abandoned corridor. He squeezed between the narrow stone walls, letting his forehead fall forward against the cold stone. The First Order base was ancient, even more than Snoke, and he could only wonder at the purpose of such a tiny space.

He tried to stem his shaking and slow his breathing. He knew Rey would be strong, but she was so much more powerful than he anticipated. Untrained, she shoved him from her mind and crawled into his, ripping open a hole between them in the process. She had ignited her side of the bond; he could feel it pulsing from the direction of her cell. He knew her blossoming powers were probably from the bite in the village. It would be a few weeks, maybe less, before the awakening consumed her. He cursed the timing – it couldn’t be worse. This is now how things were supposed to go. He felt a tug on his mind, dark and foul. Snoke. He took a shaking breath, steeling himself against the shameful meeting that was to follow.

“The messenger resisted _you?_ ” Snoke’s voice stung Kylo like sand rubbed into a raw wound. He sighed, a mixture of frustration and disappointment. “Who is she?”

Kylo opened his mouth to answer, only to be interrupted by a fuming Hux as he entered the tent. “She’s a Vivant. The only remaining one.” Hux saw Kylo stiffen as he stopped beside him.

Snoke’s face curled into a grotesque smile as he leaned back in his chair. “The Vivants,” he said, almost nostalgic. “They are a relic of the old days. Do you know why they wore red, General Hux?”

Hux shook his head.

Kylo spoke up, “It represents the blood of their enemies.” Snoke regarded Kylo, and he wished he had kept quiet.

“Yes. In the early days of the Old Republic they used to wear pristine white uniforms underneath.”

“That seems an impractical choice for battle,” Hux snorted.

“Precisely, General. It was an intimidation tactic. As they fought, their uniforms absorbed the blood of their victims, as well as their own. Their own sacrifice was indistinguishable from the destruction of their enemies – to them it was all the same thing. They wore death like a badge.” Snoke sighed wistfully. “Now there was an enemy worth fighting. I almost lament their demise. Unfortunately, it would mean the loss of many of my men. You two would be struggling more than you already are.” Snoke’s snarled voice turned cold. “Explain to me, General, why I have a young Vivant in my prison and not the map to the Claiohm Solais in my hands.”

“Ren believed we no longer needed the map, Supreme Leader. The map is in the satchel of a horse, presumably safely in the hands of the Resistance.”

“The girl has seen the map,” Kylo broke in. “I can get it from her, I just need more time.”

Snoke ignored Kylo for the moment, turning his attention to Hux. “The Resistance will surely be preparing an attack, or gathering their forces against an assault of our own. You must move quickly. How soon until the weapon is ready again?”

“Less than 48 hours,” Hux answered without hesitation. Snoke looked pleased. “You are dismissed.” Hux shot a gloating look at Kylo before breezing through the tent flap.

Snoke turned back to Kylo, picking up their conversation as if no time has passed. “The Vivants manifested minor druidic abilities from time to time, but not enough to explain your on-going failure.” His booming voice was harsh.

Kylo hated to tell Snoke more about Rey, but he had to offer some explanation. “She is strong with the Force. Untrained, but strong than she knows.”

Snoke calmed, leaning forward with obvious intrigue. “Could she be the one?” He looked at Kylo like he already knew the answer and Kylo felt sick. “You have until dawn tomorrow to get the information from her. After that, she’s _mine.”_

Hot jealousy flashed through Kylo and he smothered a deep growl, his limbs suddenly shaking with supernatural energy. Snoke smirked at him. “Don’t worry, my Knight. I will give her back to you when I’m finished. Then she is yours to do whatever you please with.” Revulsion raced through Kylo at Snoke’s insinuation, followed by scorching fury. Snoke interrupted his violent fantasies. “You have compassion for her.” He leaned closer, peering into Kylo’s eyes, who struggled not to look away. “You see her as kindred.” He hummed. “How curious.” His tone grew cold as death. “It will be your downfall, Kylo Ren. You are dismissed.” His image disappeared.

Kylo stalked out of the tent, clenching and unclenching his fists. He was halfway to Rey’s cell before he realized where he was going. He continued on his path. Snoke knew. Kylo couldn’t imagine how he couldn’t have figured it out. New desperation welled inside him. He _had_ to convince Rey to show him the map. He didn’t want to think about what would happen if he had to hand her over to Snoke.

* * *

Rey woke a few hours later with a groan, feeling bruised and battered. Her head spun and dimly, memories filtered back. After the failed interrogation two guards came to escort her to a different cell. The second her restraints came off, she launched into a vicious attack, taking down both of the guards with relative ease. She was halfway through the door when a force snared her and a black-clad figure peeled away from the shadows of the hallway. Rey could have sworn Kylo was laughing at as her consciousness drained away and strong arms caught her once again.

Her gaze swept her new surroundings. Bare walls met her on three sides, the fourth merely a barred door. A grated window was set high on one side. She laid on a rickety cot with a heavy woolen blanket over her. A small wooden basin and bucket with clean water stood in another corner. The floor was swept clean. Rey was surprised. She imagined a First Order dungeon to be more, well, dungeon-like. A tray with thick, fragrant stew and a slice of bread sat just inside the door. She scrubbed her face with the water then ate, taking her time. Then she set to examining every part of her cell. The doors appeared to have no hinges or pins of any kind and an energy itched up her arms when she touched the cool material. The stone walls were unnatural smooth, preventing her from climbing even a foot off the ground. The food came with no utensils. She tried to pry pieces of wood off the cot and water basin to no avail, left only with raw fingers for her efforts. Frustrated, she slumped back onto her cot. Now that she knew Finn and the others were safe for the time being, confusion dominated her thoughts. She struggled to reconcile Dr. Ren, the smiling, careful, kind man with Kylo Ren, a self-assured, masked killer who destroyed Maz’s castle and then kidnapped and imprisoned her. She needed answers.

The knot in her head persisted. It was no longer painful, but it pulsed with foreign emotions. A dull ache had also formed in her chest, and a vague unease had settled around her. The unease urged her to go _out_ and _find_. Find what, she didn’t know. It pulled in shifting directions, growing fainter and stronger seemingly at random. As the ache began to ease, heavy footsteps thudded down the hallway and a dark shadow fell over her door. Rey didn’t look up, she knew who it was. A shiver passed through her at that knowledge.

“Are you going to try to run away again?” Rey spared a glance before turning away. His mask was back.

“That’s a yes.” The same force seized her, almost familiar now, pinning her in place so tightly she couldn’t inch her head to watch how he opened the door. She cursed her petty resistance. The door closed and Rey staggered under the abrupt freedom. Kylo was crouched down again, hands pressed against his thighs. Rey got the impression of a cat watching a bird in a cage. He took off his helmet without prompting, his face again eliciting shock. They stared in silence. Rey broke first.

“Why pose as a doctor?”

His head tilted, dark waves brushing against his forehead. “The doctor your traitor sent was a First Order informant. He would have reported you immediately.”

“For what?” Rey was more befuddled.

A tiny smile ghosted across his face. “How’s your arm?”

She didn’t answer, but her face clouded as she rubbed her bandages that covered perfect skin instead of a wound. “What did the doctor inform about?”

“The presence of possible shapeshifters.” His gaze was steady, evaluating.

Doubts renewed, worming into Rey’s mind. She changed the subject, her voice low with a hint of grief. “Did you kill him?”

Kylo’s head tilted a fraction. “You have concern for a man who would have led to your death or enslavement without remorse,” he remarked softly, before a condescending sneer appeared. “I saved your life. You should be grateful.”

“Don’t you dare tell me what I should feel. You’re demented if you think I would ever be thankful to you for anything.” He flinched and clenched his jaw and Rey almost regret her words. She sniffed. “So you were trying to keep me out of the hands of the First Order.” She glanced pointedly around the cell. “You’re doing a wonderful job.”

He gritted his teeth. “You made it impossible. Why did you have to go and get tangled up with the Resistance?” He sounded personally insulted, like she’s done it just to spite him.

“Do you have any idea who my family is?” She asked wearily. She was becoming tired of discussing her heritage.

“I know who you are.”

A silent minute passed. Kylo’s voice was steely when he spoke again. “Just show me the map.” He moved closer to her. Rey sneered. “Why don’t you just read my mind again? You did so well before.” Kylo’s nostrils flared and he glared at her. With their bond now alive and open, he didn’t dare go digging around in her head without her cooperation. He was just as vulnerable as she was. Desperation clawed at his mind. “If you don’t tell me, Snoke will take over. That cannot happen.” He took another step towards her, his desperation reflected in his eyes. Unconsciously, Rey found herself moving closer as well.

She let out a heavy breath. “I don’t understand any of this. Why go through the trouble of saving me and protecting me only to lock me up and hand me over to your Druid? Why are you so afraid of him getting to me?” Alarm flashed over Kylo’s face. Rey almost smiled. “Yeah, that was another thing I learned while you were _interrogating_ me.”

“You should be afraid of it too,” Kylo warned in a ragged whisper. The knot in her head bloomed with fear, mingling with her own until Rey couldn’t tell them apart. She refused to look at him. A tug on her body, and her head pulled to meet his gaze. The fingertips of his gloved hand brushed her cheek. It was so brief, it could have been a draft of air, but Rey’s face tingled where leather met skin. His voice was soft, dark eyes pleading. “Rey, just tell me where the Claiohm Solais is.” His voice cracked. “Please.” She stared into his eyes, feeling herself being sucked down into their warm depths. The way he said her name left heat racing down her limbs. She returned the favor and spoke his name for the first time; the word felt indulgent and lush in her mouth, but it felt right.

“Kylo,” she whispered. “I can’t. You know I can’t.”

Hostility returned to his face. “Your loyalty to the Resistance is misplaced. They will turn on you, too. You can’t keep your true nature a secret forever.” Rey shot him a hostile look of her own. He turned abruptly, holding her against the wall with the Force while the cell door opened without a touch. The doors slid shut and Rey followed him to the bars. Their conversation had left her with three times as many questions and few answers. She realized the ache and sense of unease has disappeared the moment he stepped into her cell. To her dismay, it began to return and she felt anxious at the prospect of him leaving.

“What did you do to my head?” She demanded hotly.

His dark eyes glowed in the lamplight as he stepped up to the bars, nearly nose to nose with her. “You did that to yourself.”

“What is it?”

His eyes danced. “You’ll figure it out.”

She bared her teeth in a feral growl, shaking the bars. They barely rattled, emitting a vibrating sensation that buzzed down her arms again, this time painfully. She released them with a hiss. He laughed, a dark throaty sound that set her chest thudding.

He leaned closer to the bars again. “Be careful, mon petite loup garou.”

Rey snarled. “Don’t call me that!”

Faces still close, Kylo’s expression grew grave. “The First Order is safer for you right now than being with the Resistance. You’re under my protection here. For now. At dawn, you’re out of my hands. I can’t protect you anymore.” He leaned away and his cool returned as he sauntered down the hallway, leaving her with a pounding heart and the rich sound of his laugh ringing in her ears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for everyone's patience. For any of those who read the previous version of this chapter, this is not much different. I'm much happier with this, but thank you for the kind words!


	18. Chapter 18

Kylo’s laughs burned in his throat like Nim swallowed too quickly. His Knights bid for his thoughts, their alerts foggy in his mind while he fought to formulate a plan. He’d felt Rey’s wiggling doubts, about herself, about the security of the Resistance, about the truth of his words. But it wasn’t enough. Her stubborn defiance was blood-borne. She clung to her heritage. Yet just days before she denied it, clinging instead to her unobtrusive and tired life as a lowly messenger. He hoped she could accept the truth of herself as quickly. But it was a frail hope – this truth wasn’t worn on her shoulders, it was secret, forbidden, unthinkable.

His mind whirled with ideas, picked up and discarded quickly: Run away from the First Order with her and hope no one found them. Let her go and hope she returned to him. Tell Snoke everything and beg him not to interfere. Hand her over to Snoke and let him break her. The last option would be the easiest; he’d get Rey back, roiling with darkness and a loyal servant to Snoke. They would serve him, side by side. The idea left Kylo sick and churning with rage. He doubted Snoke would be able to totally remake her, Rey was too strong, and too stubborn. She’d be a shell of a person, an automaton. All his ideas were riddled with impossibilities. Panic balled in his stomach. His time was running out.

* * *

 

Finn’s gaze swept the landscape below him, his breath escaping in a rush when he sighted a familiar hooked formation in the peaks of the mountains to the north. Dusk neared, they exited the tunnels just in time. Another hour or two and they’d have spent the night waiting for the sun to figure out where they were. Hours wasted while Rey would be locked up, or worse, in a dank cell somewhere deep within the First Order garrisons. He shimmied down the enormous evergreen that acted as a makeshift scout tower, deftly weaving between prickly branches sticky with sap. Deadened pine needles dampened his jump to the forest floor. The delegation crowded around him, faces expectant.

“We went pretty far west,” Finn informed. “I think we’re about a six hour walk from the First Order base, but it’s hard to say.” Finn surveyed BB-8, who was trailing behind one of the squires. He looked dejected, but not exhausted. Finn was amazed he made it through the tunnels without panicking, a lesser horse would have refused. He was amazed BB-8 even fit through the tunnels. Anyone else’s horse would have been too big. They were lucky Poe wasn’t especially tall. _Poe_. Finn’s thoughts soured. It was foolish to hope Poe was still alive, but he did anyway.

Han nodded to Kerric. “Time for you to head out. Take BB-8. Got enough provisions to get to Lios?”

Kerric nodded, her springy dark curls swaying. She pulled a map from her satchel, offering it to Finn. “Can you point out where we are on this map?” He scanned the sparsely marked map, circling his finger in a small spot along a thin line that snaked northwest to south. “Around here. If we can find this creek, we can follow it upstream in the direction of the base.” He dragged the finger northwest, tapping a spot in between two mountain range markings. “First Order is about there, on the west side of Morien’s Pass.” Kerric’s face paled and he heard Nettrik inhale sharply behind him. Chewie grumbled darkly.

“We have to go through Morien’s Pass to get to the base?” Stryker exclaimed. Finn passed a reluctant nod over his shoulder. Han ran a palm over his moppy hair, trying not to look spooked. Kerric’s brown eyes were wide. “But it’s haunted. They say it’s controlled by the Dark side. Everything is warped.”

Finn offered a grim smile. “So is the First Order.” Finn tapped on the map again. “I think there’s a town not far from here, hopefully you won’t run into it – it’s under First Order control. Head more east than north for an hour or two.” Kerric’s features hardened with resolve as she tucked the map back into her bag. Han pulled the map to the Claiohm Solais from his vest pocket and handed it to her. “Get this to Leia,” he murmured with quiet intensity. Kerric nodded somberly and stowed the map in her own jacket pocket. The delegation wished her luck and stepped away as Nettrik enclosed her in his arms, murmuring softly into her ear. Their faces held mirrored expressions of heavyhearted resignation. Finn suspected everyone in the Resistance prepared themselves to lose friend and lover at every battle or mission, but still they sought connection. He admired the reckless bravery of it.

Kerric hoisted a bag, climbed atop BB-8, and with a lingering look behind her, slipped into the deepening gloom of the forest. Nettrik stood with his back to the group for some time, staring mournfully after her.

“C’mon,” Han barked at the group. “Let’s find this damned creek and get as far as we can tonight.” The wearied group filed behind him. Finn fell in next to Nettrik. “She’ll be okay. You’ll see her again.”

Nettrik peered sideways at him. “You can’t know that.” Finn pursed his lips. “I do know it. I can feel it.” Nettrik’s brow crinkled, but he didn’t argue. “Do you think we’ll be able to find Poe too?”

Hurt flashed on Finn’s face and he answered with a forced detachment. “He’s been there too long.” He looked away, studying the mosses and grass that passed beneath their feet. Nettrik’s shoulders drooped.

 After snatching three hours of rest, the delegation were on their feet again, marching with confidence behind Finn as he guided. They found their creek, following it upstream in the direction of Morien’s Pass. Mountains loomed up in front of them, Morien’s Pass interrupted the mountains with a narrow slice between the peaks, the rock missing as if the blade of a god had swiped through it. The pass was an even deeper black than the shadows around them, a heavy curtain of darkness falling abruptly across the natural dark of night. They clustered in a semi-circle around it, confidence crumbling and trepidation knotting them together. Eerie moans and human-like cries rose from the pass.

“Liabra,” Stryker whispered. “Phantoms.”

“Just the wind,” Nettrik insisted, but his lips stretched tight with unease. “Is this really the only way in?”

“The only way to the southern ward that won’t be guarded. Even the First Order avoids this pass,” Finn responded with a gulp.

Han and Chewie shared a look. “That makes me feel so much better,” Han muttered. Chewie rumbled in agreement. “Everyone draw arms,” Han instructed. Swords hissed in the scabbards, arrows clacked against bows, and crossbows clicked as they were cranked into place. Three makeshift torches were passed between them – rags wrapped around branches and dipped in their only store of lamp oil. They took a collective deep breath and inched towards the pass, the murk engulfing them. The depths of the pass swallowed their torches, leaving tiny pinpricks of flame that cast no rings of light around them. A cold wind swept around their legs, carrying a musty stench and traces of carrion. Nettrik jumped as voices murmured indistinctly in his ear, the gust feeling like icy breath on his neck.

“I heard it too,” Stryker whispered to him, pressing closer until they were shoulder-to-shoulder. Nettrik looked over his shoulder screamed, clenching Stryker’s shoulder with white knuckles. The form of a woman rushed towards them, glowing with unnatural light even as she radiated darkness. Her throat gaped, ripped open, and a snapped collarbone protruded on one side. Blood glistened on dark skin.

The apparition flew straight through the group, leaving skin ice-cold where she brushed past. She headed straight for Finn, who stood frozen, staring at her face in horror. Ghostly arms grabbed at his lapels, shaking him. “This is your fault,” she wailed, blood bubbling up from her mouth. “You should never have come back.” She reached one arm behind her, pointing into the darkness and blood dripped from deep punctures in her skin. “Their deaths are on you.” The group followed her finger, gazing into the darkness. One by one, other forms appeared: men, women, and children. Throats ripped open, spines protruding, limbs held at impossible angles. A young girl stepped forward, turning one side of her face towards them. An eye dangled from its socket by shredded tendons, enormous claw marks raked through cheek and lip. One arm had been ripped from her shoulder. Han recognized several of their mangled faces – they were villagers from Agé-de.

Tears streaked down Finn’s cheeks. “I’m sorry,” he gasped, sinking to his knees in front of his mother’s ghost. “I’m so sorry.” The phantoms closed in on the group, sickly grins leering at them as they reached to claim the living. Finn’s eyes widened and he shoved his hands out, palms forward.

“NO!” He bellowed. Searing light flashed from his hands, racing outwards in a circle around him, slicing through the phantoms. They dissolved, melting against the silver light. Just as suddenly, the light was gone. The torches burned perceptibly stronger, casting narrow halos around them. The darkness was silent.

Everyone slowly turned their heads to look at Finn, who was still slumped on the ground, staring in shock at his hands.  

“What,” Han shuddered, “Was _that?_ ”

“My mother,” Finn answered dazedly. “And people from the village. Killed by shapeshifters.”

Han shook his head. “Obviously. I mean the other thing!” He waved his hands around with palms out in imitation of Finn, who just shook his head, still gazing at his hands. “I have no idea.”

Nettrik offered a hand to Finn, pulling him to his feet. “Whatever it is, I’m grateful for it,” he told Finn. The rest of the group nodded in agreement. Finn let out a long, shaky breath. “Me too. Let’s keep going. I think we’ll be safe now.”

Everyone remained pressed tightly together, glancing nervously about them, but the atmosphere was lighter, the edge of terror gone. More than a few looked with awe at Finn, who stared straight ahead, face knit in contemplation. Within the space of one step, they were out of the pass and the vile darkness fell away instantly. Deep sighs of relief rose. Finn’s steps slowed and he ventured carefully forward, arms outstretched like he walked through a room of furniture in the dark. The group watched him curiously. Suddenly his hands bounced off some invisible force and he yelped in pain. Streaks of energy crackled from his hands, racing outwards and growing. The ward shimmered into view, swirling with colors that washed their faces in sickly green and bruising purple. It stretched from cliff to cliff, and towered into the sky far out of sight.

“Neat trick,” Han grunted. Finn rubbed the back of his head and looked around. “This is the hard part.”

“ _This_ is the hard part?” Stryker repeated with raised brows. Finn made an apologetic face. “The hard part until we get into the base. Then comes the actual hard part.”

Nettrik groaned softly and rubbed his face. “Okay, tell us what to do.”

“Basically we all try to break through the ward at the same time,” Finn said. He gestured towards it. “Just kind of push on it.”

Nettrik frowned. “And then what?”

Finn shrugged. “Hopefully it fails. There are enough of us, if we hold hands and form a continuous chain across the whole ward, it shouldn’t be able to handle the strain.”

“What’s the plan when we get inside?”

Finn blinked at blond man. “Plan?”

“Yeah, we need a plan. We can’t just run in there, go looking for Rey, then snatch her and run back out. There are too many of us.”

“I don’t need to look for her, I’m pretty sure I know where she is.”

Nettrik snorted. “The rest of us don’t. We need a plan.”

Han kneeled down on the ground with a torch in hand and snatched up the nearest stick, which he waved at Finn. “Draw us a map,” he instructed, gesturing at a patch of dirt. Finn bent down, scratching marks in the dirt and explaining as he went.

“This is the main area, a castle, really. One side is built into the cliff.” He made some scratches behind the castle. “The garrisons and prisons are in the cliff part of the castle. He pointed to the east side of the base. “I have no idea what’s over here. Whatever they used to destroy Chathair, probably. That area was tightly controlled, it’s blocked off by a big wall and a heavy gate. But they marched a lot of prisoners into it, so there has to be some kind of mass prison back there. I don’t know. Doesn’t matter.”

“We need to get in there,” Han interrupted. Heads swiveled to him.

Finn vehemently shook his head. “No, absolutely not. Why?”

Han made a face. “To destroy the weapon?”

“No way, I’m here for Rey. Get her, get out.”

Han leaned forward, staring down Finn. “This is about more than Rey now. They destroyed our capital. What makes you think another city isn’t next? They have Poe. They know where the Resistance is. We’re next.”

“But we don’t even know what it is or how it works!”

Han just shrugged. “We’ll blow it up. Everything can be blown up.”

Finn’s tone grew sharper. “Do we even have enough explosives for that?”

Han paused. “We’ll get into the armory and then blow it up.”

Finn made frustrated noises but didn’t argue. “Okay, let’s plan, then. I think this is a terrible idea. We’re probably going to die.”

Han smirked. “If only you knew how many times someone’s told me that.”

* * *

 

 Kylo watched the incoming line of prisoners with constrained frustration, standing on a curtain wall between towers. He tried not to look at their faces, not to look at them at all, letting the edges of his visor eclipse the rows of wearied and terrified faces. But he couldn’t shut out the sound of dozens of marching feet and the muffled cries of fearful tears. They had no idea what was going to happen to them, only that they’d been ripped from home and family in the middle of the night and marched through the forest into the First Order base. Hux stood on the ground below, uncapped, his flame-colored hair easily identifiable in the torchlight, feverish satisfaction on his face as he watched the prisoners. Kylo's Knights prowled the edges of the crowd like sheep-herding dogs, snapping with barred fangs at the occasional prisoner who eyed the walls of the cliffs that flanked them, searching for an escape. Hux was desperate to stoke the power of the weapon as quickly as possible. His next target was Lios, chosen because they were certain the Resistance base was not far away, courtesy of Poe’s mind. They didn’t have time to send our reconnaissance to pinpoint the base and bring back coordinates for their engineers to use for a precision strike. This strike would be wide and large. Much larger than the one that hit the capital. It would not only obliterate the city, but all of the surrounding countryside.

A Knight pulled at his mind. It was Hael. His message was distorted as it passed from his own animal mind into Kylo’s human state, but he got the gist of it. Something was wrong with the southern ward. Kylo growled in the back of his throat, turning to a Stormtrooper on his right. “Tell Hux I’m needed at the southern ward.” He yanked off his helmet, cloak, and robes in a few rough motions, shoving them at the Stormtrooper, who took them without confusion.

He leapt off the wall, his body engulfed by a flash of light and color. He fell several stories, paws hitting the packed dirt below with only a grunt as he absorbed the impact. His long strides ate up ground as he loped in the direction of the southern ward. His mind crowded with the network of his Knights where they were spread throughout the base and the surrounding forest. He called for Hael, demanding a full explanation. It came to him in images and smells, peppered with short, fragmented thoughts. Someone had breached the southern ward. Someones, Hael clarified, the mixed scents of a large group filling his nostrils. There was the tiniest hint of a Force signature – evidence someone with druidic abilities had affected the ward. Hael didn’t recognize any of the scents, but Kylo did. He recognized several. The Resistance was now inside the First Order base, among them, his father. And accompanied by an unknown Light druid. A weak druid, but one nonetheless. Alarm rippled through him.

He threw his head back. A cobalt expanse met him; dawn approached. He howled into the night, the call imbued with tones of command and power, calling his Knights to him. His cry cut short as the bond in his mind exploded. His alarm renewed – Rey was channeling the Force with incredible potency. Her hold of it expanded, then shrunk, slipping away from her. He reached towards it through the bond, trying to understand what was happening. The connection broke and the heat of the bond fizzled back as it was before. Suddenly, Snoke blared into his mind, lancing his thoughts.

_“Bring me the girl.”_

He’d felt her too. Kylo loosed his tight hold on his frustration and roared, a deafening sound that rattled the gravel under his paws.

* * *

 

 Rey tried to sleep, twisting from side to side in her narrow cot. Silver beams of light found their way through the grate of her high window as the moon rose. Kylo hadn’t been back since warning her about dawn and laughing at her frustration, almost in the same breath. The knot in her head was slowly unfurling with every hour, becoming less of a knot and more of a net, spiderwebbing tentative strands through her mind. Mounting dread seeped from the net, and with it, a rising sense of hopelessness. She stayed as far away from it as possible, trying to ignore the sensations it exuded. They were almost physical, leaving a distinct taste in her mouth, like the darkest chocolate. Sweet, chased with bitterness.

She drifted to sleep, able to forget her exhausted, aching limbs for a few precious minutes. A jolt of naked alarm ripped her from her sleep. Her eyes flew open, heart pounding. She jumped off her cot, crouching to face the doors of her cell. The hallway was empty, save for the stoic guards on either side. Silence met her ears. The cell was faintly lighter than before – dawn neared. Still her heart pounded. She realized the alarm emanated from her head. Specifically, that persistent, raw presence. The presence she was almost sure was Kylo. The thought both intrigued and terrified her. She didn’t understand how it was even possible.

Determination diffused in her limbs, some hers, some not. She approached the bars, calling out to one of the guards. “Hey! What’s going on out there?” He didn’t respond, didn’t even incline his shiny, white helmet to indicate he heard her. She huffed, focusing on the door instead. Something was going on outside of the prisons, and she needed to get out.

She narrowed her focus on the door to her cell. Kylo had opened it without touching it. _The Force?_ She mused. Her eyes slid shut, and she called up the door in her mind. It no longer consisted of bars, it was a network of ropes, each one slick and vibrating, like a nest of snakes all tangled together. A puzzle. She pulled at a strand here, a strand there, trying to understand the connections between them. Their complexity was dizzying. Each mental touch sizzled, burning tiny, throbbing wounds. Alarm spiked through her mind again, and the need to be free almost choked her.

 _“The Light – it’s always been there. It will guide you._ ” Maz’s words sprang to her mind. Rey forgot about the door. She forgot about the cold stones beneath her, the weight of her own body. There was just her, the presence in her mind, and a greater power outside of them both. She reached for it. It poured into her like water through a breaking dam and she gasped, shaking with fresh power. Without hesitation, she reached for the bars of the door. Energy crackled and buzzed with increasing frequency as they buckled under the weight of her strength, crashing into the corridor. The guards exclaimed in shock, whipping towards where she was still half-crouched in her cell. Time slowed, stretching out. Without a thought, she flung out a hand like she’d seen Kylo do, and the guard froze in place. The other guard lunged for her, and she swept her other arm towards him, sending him flying through the air. He hit the wall and crashed to the floor, his armor producing a sickening crunch. He didn’t get up. She turned to the frozen guard.

“I’ll take this, thank you very much,” she muttered, yanking his sword from his scabbard. It was too big for her small frame, but it would work for the moment. She flicked her wrist, sending the guard’s head smashing into the wall hard enough to knock him unconscious for a good while. Reality rushed back, and she staggered on her feet. The Force began to slip away from her, and she desperately grasped at it. Of its own volition, it stretched for the knot in her head, and the knot stretched back. Shaken, she let go and the Force snapped from her mind. She took off in the direction she’d seen Kylo come and go, scanning up and down the corridor with razor intensity. As her eyes slid past the mirror-smooth plating of a wall sconce, she slammed to a stop. Trembling, she stepped closer to the bright surface, gazing hard into her own reflection. Her eyes glowed a deep, burnished gold, like twin harvest moons. She stumbled away from the image with a gasp, and tore down the hallway as if monsters snapped at her heels.

 

 

 


	19. Chapter 19

Rey trotted cautiously around a bend. She passed several other cells, peering into each as she moved, looking for Poe. Most cells in this corridor were barred with regular doors – hinges, keyholes, and all. A few held prisoners who huddled in the back, the stink of stale blood, human waste, and moldy straw wafting out. Her cell was practically a palace in comparison. Around the next bend, two Stormtroopers flanked a door. They raised pikes studded with curved hooks like rows of teeth. She pushed outwards with one hand to knock them over. The soldier swayed a few inches. “Bloody hells,” she muttered, raising her sword to meet a blow. The narrow hallway bottle-necked them, forcing the second guard to hover uselessly behind, lest he skewer his companion in an attempt to get Rey. Hands wrapped around the bars and a face appeared. Split lip, a black eye, and a forehead featuring a nasty gash.

“Poe!” she cried. Poe broke into a wide grin, distorted by his injuries, but still a happy sight. She swiped at the soldier with renewed intensity, successfully tangling her sword in the hooks of his pike. She lunged, shoving him backwards, slamming the length of his weapon into his face. He stumbled, tripping over the guard behind him and they both went down in a crash of armor and curses. As they scrambled to their feet, Rey used the moment to reach for the Force. It danced just out of reach. With a growl, she reached harder and seized it. Her limbs tingled. She caught Poe’s gaze; he stared at her eyes, jaw slack. Rey ignored it, throwing one guard hard against the ground and catching the other in a hold. With a deep breath, she tried something she’d only heard quiet rumors about.

“You will stop resisting and open the cell door.”

The guard wiggled. “I’ll throw you in there with him, Resistance scum.”

She squeezed her eyes shut, settling into a calm. Her skin flushed with a warmth that felt like a summer sun.

“You will stop resisting and open the cell door.” Her voice carried an odd timbre, cool and even.

The guard straightened and stilled. “I will stop resisting and open the cell door.”

“And you’ll drop your weapon!”

“And I’ll drop my weapon.” His pike clattered down and he produced a large ring of keys from pouch at his hip. He unlocked the door and Poe rushed out, snatching the keys and shoving the guard into the cell. They locked both guards in the cell and Rey tossed the keys far down the hallway. This time she didn’t let go of the Force, anchoring it around her like armor.

“We’ve got to move, something is happening out there,” she told Poe. He didn’t respond, studying her with squinted eyes.

“You’re glowing.”

She looked down at her arms. They glowed with a pearly luminescence. “It’s the light in here.” She swallowed. “Come on.”

Poe’s brow furrowed, but he followed her down the hallway, occasionally checking over his shoulder. They ran into a few more guards, and Rey tossed them aside with little effort.

“I would really like to find my cloak,” Rey said. “And my saber.” An ugly voice hissed in her head. _You don’t deserve to wear it anymore._

Poe glanced at her sideways. “Maybe if you didn’t incapacitate everyone we come across we could get some information. Like where our stuff is and how the hells we get out of here.” Rey colored at his words. They stopped at a series of arrow slits, cramming their faces against them to get a glimpse out. They were high above the castle main and the rest of the base. Directly across from them, the base disappeared into shadowed cliffs. To the west, wearied people were marched through the main gate, across the base, and disappeared through a gateway on the east side. Poe inhaled sharply. “They’re bringing an awful lot of prisoners in.”

“At least we’re not too far from the main gate,” Rey said with forced optimism. She barely finished her words when a shimmering curtain blinked into existence outside the gate. They gasped in unison. “A ward,” Poe mused, and Rey nodded in agreement.

“This place must be crawling with druids,” she whispered. “Look at the size of that thing. How are we supposed to get out?”

Poe threw her a pointed look. “You seem to be doing the druid thing pretty well. How come you didn’t tell us?”

Rey’s face twisted. “It’s a recent development. I had no idea. Whatever I…am, I don’t think I’m strong enough to get through that thing.”

Poe turned from the arrow slit. “Let’s get there first, worry about getting through it later.”

They continued their hunt for a way out, finally finding stairs downwards that ended in a set of four guards. They made quick work of them, leaving one conscious, frozen in a Force-hold.

“Tell us how to get out of here,” Rey demanded. He stared at her in defiant silence, until his breastplate started to crumple in on itself with a focused look from Rey.

“Okay!” He wheezed. “Go left, left again, down the first stairs on your right, then right, then left, then up the second set of stairs on the left, then right, then down the stairs.”

Poe interrupted, turning to Rey. “Can we just find a window and jump out of it?”

Rey pushed on his breastplate again. “Tell us a different way out.”

The Stormtrooper squeaked in alarm. “You could cut through the guard tower, the walkway is down this corridor.”

Rey growled and resisted the urge to squish his breastplate down further. She settled for thumping him on the head with the hilt of her sword.

“Let’s grab some armor, we won’t make it halfway across dressed like this,” Poe suggested.

They strapped on bulky Stormtrooper armor and Rey was almost glad when she yanked the helmet on, covering the last of her still glowing skin and concealing her eyes from view. Poe grabbed a nearby crossbow, nodding to Rey. “Okay,” he readied them. “Get out, just keep heading for the main gates. Deal with it when we get there. And Rey? No more throwing guards through the air. I think that would look a little suspicious.”

Rey grimaced under her helmet. “Fine,” she muttered, her voice barely recognizable through the distortion of the helmet. Suddenly they heard a massive blast outside and the floor and walls trembled. Rey ran to an arrow slit. Off to her right, a turret was smoking, the top blown clean off.

“Either someone’s about to get very fired or we have some friends on the inside,” Poe quipped, peering over her shoulder.

“Who do we know that’s stupid enough to sneak into the First Order base and then try to blow it up?” Rey’s smile shone in her voice.

Poe grinned. “Let’s go find our friends.”

* * *

 

Kylo trotted up to Hael. Several Knights stood behind him, nervously shuffling and sniffing the air. They stood next to a guard tower. Five lumps lay on the ground, pushed against the base of the tower to conceal them. Stormtroopers, Kylo realized after a second, all stripped of their armor. He gave an amused bark. Decades later and his father was still up to the same old tricks. Smart tricks, Kylo thought sourly. The armor not only muted the invaders’ scents, but masked them with the smell of the previous wearer. It would confuse his Knights as they tried to separate the trail of friend from foe. Five more scents, one familiar and four not, all clear and sharp, led away from the ward and guard tower. He sent an image of Knights following the trail and two immediately peeled away, noses near the ground.

Now closer to the ward, Kylo couldn’t just feel where the druid had pierced through, he could see it. The energy sputtered across the place the druid breached, weak lines networking outward from where it had cracked straight through and the invaders slipped inside. But the signature felt off. The druid had used the Force, certainly, but there was a hint of some other power. It felt ancient, bringing to mind endless sunrises and sunsets, like the feel of granite weathered smooth over hundreds of thousands of years. The druid wasn’t weak, Kylo realized. Just different, unlike anything he’d ever encountered.

The bond hummed again. Rey had a firm hold on the Force now, and she was on the move, presumably escaped and looking for a way out of the base. Kylo snapped at the air. Things couldn’t be going worse.

From behind him, an explosion thundered, booming in his sensitive ears. He flinched, whirling to look in the direction of the noise. A plume of smoke and flames rose into the night from a turret on the west side of the castle. The lives of his two wolves sent to follow the fresh trail sputtered in his mind. Their presence faded. Dead. Hael and the remaining wolves whined, churning agitated circles in the dirt around Kylo. He howled, deep and ominous, the sound vibrating through the ground and trees, rushing into the night to call every shapeshifter outside the base to him.

One by one, in swift succession, the presence of many of the other Knights blinked out in his mind. Someone was carving a swath of destruction across the base, and he could think of only one person fast enough and strong enough to do that: Chewbacca. Thinking about the massive man turned his stomach; Chewie had never done anything to him, and now he would probably have to kill him. He smothered a mournful howl, instead turning and heading straight for the destroyed turret. His instincts screamed when the armory came into view and a split second later, the building exploded, heat and debris blasting through the air, throwing him to the ground. He saw Stormtroopers flying through the air, landing in crumpled heaps in a circle around the armory. A piece of rubble lodged itself in his side, just short of piercing his lungs. He yanked it out with sharp canines, whining as the hot material seared his mouth. _Focus._ He reached out, quieting the human part of him that crowded his mind with various worse-case scenarios. His attention narrowed, filtering out background noise and sensations, letting the strongest instincts stand out: Rey, and his father. They were moving towards each other. He sprinted off in the direction of the prisons, straight towards the first explosion.

* * *

 

 The two squires, Asher and Sparrow, followed by the healer, Veris, flung themselves around the corner of the garrison, narrowly missing being sighted by a group of Stormtroopers who jogged past. All three struggled with several heavy bags. Warren, crouched in some bushes, spared a quick glance before returning her attention to the castle grounds, which churned with agitated shapeshifters and soldiers. Veris handed Warren a bag, nodding at it. “Explosives.”

“Excellent. Can’t wait to blow up whatever is on the other side of that wall.” She took careful aim and loosed an arrow, her lips curling up when it hit its target. “Killing shapeshifters never gets old,” she smirked.

Asher spat in the dirt. “Good riddance to the soulless monsters. They deserve it.” Warren felled a nearby Stormtrooper who noticed the dead shapeshifter, then sent an explosive arrow flying into a stack of straw around the corner in front of the garrison. Soldiers rushed towards the growing fire, and they four slipped around the back of the building, heading for the sounds of whinnying that rose from a building on the far side of the garrison. “Time for you guys to collect our rides out of here,” Warren said.

Finn, Han, Nettrick, Stryker, and the burliest of the cavalry members, Torr, milled around an entrance to the castle, trying to look natural. Finn jittered in his armor, the weight feeling uncomfortably familiar. A blast rumbled through the building. “That’s our cue,” Han muttered to Finn, who jerked his head towards the cliff-face pocked with arrow slits and small, barred windows. They took off at a jog, mimicking the speed of the Troopers around them, staying as far from other squadrons as possible.

Two more Stormtroopers jogged around the corner, the first slamming to a halt when they saw the five of them. The rear Stormtrooper bounced off her partner, shaking her head in disorientation. Finn gasped, his bow raised to eye-level. The rear Stormtrooper yelled something at her companion before both started hollering and waving their arms around. Finn’s bow dipped, perplexed. One darted around and jumped at Finn before he got his bow back up, tackling him to the ground. Finn shook violently, aiming for the vulnerable spots between the breastplate and arm plates and the soldier grunted as he landed several solid jabs.

“Stop! We’re not your enemy!” The voice from the mask was strained but sounded vaguely familiar. Finn stopped resisting.

“Poe?”

“Hi Finn.”

Poe tugged his helmet up long enough to flash Finn a devilish grin. Finn gaped, then smiled, then frowned. “How did you? Where’s Rey?”

Poe jerked his chin towards the other Stormtrooper, who waved. “She told me it was you. We’re both fine. We need to get out of here.”

They scrambled to their feet as Finn shook his head. “We’re going to destroy whatever is behind that eastern wall, whatever it is they used on the capital.”

Poe froze, then sighed in resignation and looked to the others. “Han’s idea?”

“Leia would be pretty mad if we got all the way in here and didn’t get rid of the thing,” Han replied with a smirk, then gestured with his sword to the east wall. “We’re meeting the others there.” They all started off at a slow jog, falling into a vague squad formation. Finn dropped back next to Rey. “You okay?”

“You came back for me.”

“Of course we did,” Finn replied.

Rey halted him midstride with a crushing hug.

Han appeared beside them. “Stormtroopers don’t hug,” he berated them. “Move it.”

* * *

 

 Chaos overtook the First Order base. The Resistance seemed to be everywhere at once – the destroyed tower was quickly followed by the armory, and then the garrison. His Stormtroopers had nothing to fight – the Resistance disappeared as soon as they appeared. His Knights were increasingly shaken as each died. Battle was one thing – they went in prepared and ready for each loss. But this was a virtual ambush. All his Knights were in their animal state to minimize the time it took to spread commands and information through the pack. But it made them vulnerable, as their minds stretched in a wide net of connections. Every death was a hole, and the net was unraveling.

Chewie, Han, Rey – they were all headed for the east wall. For the weapon. Kylo turned to find the Stormtrooper with his clothes and weapons. The idea of meeting his father after years apart weapon-less, helmet-less, and bare-chested daunted him more than he wanted to admit. 

* * *

Warren and Sparrow hovered not far from the east wall, the shadow of a small building hiding their rail-thin silhouettes. Han let out a sharp three-note whistle and with a relieved sigh, they stepped from the shadows.

Poe pulled off his helmet with a wide smile. “Warren!”

She returned a lazy grin and chuckled. “You smug bastard.” Poe ruffled her choppy hair.

Warren’s eyes settled on Rey and she smiled. “Guess what I found in the armory.” She pulled a thick, crumpled ball of vibrant red fabric from one of her bags.

“My cloak!” Rey nearly snatched it from her hands and resisted the urge to bury her face in it. “Thank you, Warren. Any chance you found my saber?”

Warren shrugged. “There were a lot of sabers in there. Sorry.”

Rey was already pinning her cloak around her with a small smile. “It’s okay, I didn’t think I’d see this again.”

“Warren, what are we up against?” Han interrupted.

“Three guards to each tower, two patrolling along the wall on either side. The gate’s solid, no idea what’s on the other side. Veris and the tadpoles are bringing horses to the southern ward.”

Han nodded at her bags. “You got some grappling hooks in there?”

“Of course I do,” she replied, affronted.

Han pulled off his helmet and the rest followed, huddling up. “Finn and Nettrick, take the right side of the wall, then move to the right tower. Keep it clear for Warren, Stryker, and Sparrow to get up and over. Rey and Poe, take the left side. Torr and I will keep anyone down here off your backs until we get the gates open.”

They exchanged grim looks, drawing their weapons. Poe nodded. “Let’s go.”

Swiftly, they fanned out, creeping towards the wall in light-footed crouches. Rey took a deep breath and reached out with the Force, trying to find the guards along the wall. She could tell people were up there, but they felt blurry, and she couldn’t make out their locations. Unlike another the other presence in her mind, which remained a distinct point, a point that moved towards them with alarming swiftness.

Now within eyesight of the towers and wall, the group launched into action. With fluid motions, Finn and Nettrick let loose a flurry of arrows, counterbalanced by an assault on the other side. Rey tried not to hold her breath, fervently praying the clouds that passed over the moon and the cover of night would make them difficult targets to sight. Arrows followed the shouting of the guards, but they flew wide, clattering to the ground around them, and Rey sent up silent thanks to the gods. Warren tossed hooks over the wall, expertly wedging them into the seams of the stone and the three started their ascent. An arrow whined towards Rey face and she dodged, but the razor edge clipped the shell of her ear. She hissed as the night air stung the open wound and sticky warmth spread down her neck. She wished she left the Stormtrooper helmet on.

The melee was over as quickly as it started. A few bodies slumped over the side of the wall, and the group gathered around the gate, waiting for it to open. A small hatch in one side slammed open, Warren’s face on the other side.

“Han! There’s no way to open the gate. No handles, no locks, no pulleys or cranks or anything. It doesn’t even have hinges. Our swords bounced right off. What the hells is this?”

Han grunted with a wary look at the gate. Rey appeared at his elbow. “I can open it,” she murmured to him. She avoided his gaze. Han opened his mouth to protest but she was already at the gate. She brushed a hand against it. It sent a painful buzzing up her arms, just like her cell door.

Han watched Rey shut her eyes. Her face went slack, the tightness around her mouth and eyebrows smoothing out, and her skin picked up a luminescence that was more than just the moonlight. Her image blurred slightly, the edges of her body seeming to melt with the night. He blinked a few times, and she was solid again. A long buried memory flickered in his mind.

The door groaned, and with a series of hisses and clicks, broke into pieces and folded up on itself, disappearing into slots in the walls. Warren stood on the other side, mouth hanging open. Rey pressed her lips together as she slid past her, but she was pleased. This time the door unraveled with smooth efficiency, instead of being blown open like the door of her cell.

“That explains why I never saw Stormtroopers going in and out of here by themselves,” Finn muttered to himself. He and Poe followed Rey through the gateway. Poe cast her short, sidelong glances, coloring when she caught him. He seemed to follow at an unnecessary distance, with a new tightness to his movements as he watched her. She shook her head. She was imagining it, she told herself, and everyone was tense right now.

Those dressed in Stormtrooper uniforms shed their bulky gear as the others watched the darkness with swiveling heads.

“I think you should have this,” Finn told Rey, handing her the lightsaber she swore never to touch again. She took it without comment, clipping it on her belt. She surveyed the terrain beyond the gate. They stood at the outer rim of a massive basin that was too circular to be natural.

Near the edge at regular intervals stood wide, towering obelisks. Ropey, white light crackled between the obelisks like horizontal lightening. Thin walkways connected each pointed tip, meeting narrow platforms that wrapped around the obelisks. In the middle of the basin was an enormous, swimming mass that shone with an intense red light. Rey thought it looked like a red sun nestled in the earth. She assumed it was the weapon. Rey spied forms at the base of each obelisk, legs folded and arms raised in the traditional form of druidic meditation. Some hands raised and lowered with drawn glyphs, each completed motion ending in a burst of light.  Those drawing frequently motioned to uneven, curved sculptures that bulged out above the platforms along the obelisks.

Rey squinted, taking several steps closer, trying to make out what was carved into the side of the obelisks. The wind shifted and she reeled, gagging on the stench of decaying flesh and the sharp scent of blood, some hot and fresh, some chilled and congealed. Finn was beside her, grabbing her arm to steady her.

“What’s wrong?”

She pressed a wrist across her nose and her eyes watered. “You don’t smell that?” She asked him, voice muffled by her sleeve. Finn slowly shook his head, his gaze lingering over her eyes. Rey looked at the obelisks again and suddenly the light of the weapon flared, illuminating the shapes. Shock chilled her veins and she froze. From across a void, Finn’s voice floated to her, warped and distant.

“People,” she breathed. “Those are people.”

On every obelisk, a human was lashed in place with thick chains. Most hung still, slumped against their chains, heads hanging, lifeless. But Rey thought she saw a chest rising and falling with slow, hitching breaths. A young boy, in his early teens, hair soaked dark with blood. His reedy form called Desi to her mind.

She sprinted towards the boy without thought, but a heavy arm slammed around her chest, nearly swinging her off her feet.

“What are you doing?” Finn demanded in a panicked tone. She surged forward against his grip, pushing against his arms with the Force. Nothing happened. She struggled harder, leaning towards the barely breathing boy.

“I have to save him!” She insisted, voice ragged.

Finn gently shook her. “Rey! Stop!” She sagged against his arms.

“Those are people, Finn. They’re all people. On all of the obelisks. They’re people.”

Finn’s voice was hoarse. “They’re dead, Rey.”

“No! Not him.” She struggled towards the boy again. Finn followed her gaze. The humans were just indistinct forms on the side of the obelisks, but he could _feel_ them. They were all empty like abandoned shells, but the taste of terror and despair hung around them. A soft, fuzzy energy rose off the obelisk Rey stared at. She was right. He was alive, but barely.

Finn shook Rey again. “We’ll save him Rey, I promise! But you can’t just go sprinting in there. We don’t know what’s down there.”

She fell still again. “Druids,” she panted. “There’s a druid at the base of every obelisk. They’re drawing glyphs or something.”

Finn paled. The rest of the group had caught up with them by now, and they circled around Rey and Finn, apprehension mirrored on every face.

“Rey says she can see people on every obelisk and druids at the bottom.” Finn swallowed and his voice wavered. “They’re sacrificing humans, it’s probably what feeds the weapon.”

Poe and Rey looked at each other, both thinking about the long line of prisoners they saw being marched through the east wall.

“How is that possible?” Warren asked.

“The Dark druids…they’re probably transferring their energy somehow,” Finn trailed off and a dark hush fell over the group.

“There are 25 obelisks. How are we supposed to fight that many druids? What if some of them are shapeshifters?”

Finn shook his head. “Shapeshifting druids _are_ stronger, but they wouldn’t keep them in one place like that. Kylo Ren would never allow it.”

Finn noticed Rey’s head snapped his direction at the mention of Kylo’s name before she turned to stare towards the gateway not far from them. Finn took a breath to continue when Rey interrupted him.

“We don’t have much time. He’ll be here soon.”

Poe cast her another sidelong glance but didn’t question her.

Han scowled at the weapon. “The Force, druids, transferring life energy, this mumbo jumbo is not my forte.”

Warren rubbed her arms. “That much energy has to be contained somehow.”

“Probably the obelisks? They’re acting as some kind of anchor for the wards between them,” Finn speculated.

“Distract the druids, blow up the obelisks, and get out of here before that angry red stuff kills us,” Han stated.

“Poe and I saw at least 100 people getting marched into here earlier. They have to be around. We need to free them,” Rey added.

“And rescue a village,” Han tacked on.

“One of the people on an obelisk isn’t dead. A boy. We have to save him.”

Han sighed. “Distract the druids, get the boy down, blow up the obelisks, rescue a village, and get out of here before the angry red stuff kills us. Anyone else have anything to add?” Han’s furrowed eyebrows contradicted his question. Everyone quickly shook their heads.

“Uh huh,” Han drawled. “That’s right.”

“Rey and Finn, you guys distract the druids. You’ve both seemed to acquire some uh, pertinent skills lately. Get that boy down, if you can. Warren and Poe, attack the druids from a distance. Sparrow, Nettrick, and Chewie will set off explosives around each obelisk as the druids leave. Engage if you feel you can take them down, otherwise, just try to stay out of their reach. Torr, Stryker, and I will head past the weapon to find the prisoners.”

Nettrick looked around, one-by-one. “This is it you guys.”

“I’m proud of us. I couldn’t ask for better people to fight beside,” Stryker added, her voice thickening. She looked over at Warren, who brushed her fingers along the back of Stryker’s hand. “I couldn’t either,” Warren said, eyes still on Stryker.

“Stryker, if you cry, we’re all going to start crying,” Poe chuckled. She let out a watery laugh and wiped her eyes.

“No tears.”

“Fight now, cry later,” Han said. “Let’s move.”

“That should be the Resistance’s new mantra,” Poe grumbled to Warren as they nocked arrows, falling in behind Rey and Finn.

Warren snorted. “Ain’t that the sad truth.”


	20. Chapter 20

With matching strides, Finn and Rey jogged towards the obelisk where the half-dead boy hung.

“What did Han mean?”

Finn looked at Rey but she stared forward.

“About?”

“He said we _both_ have acquired ‘pertinent skills.’ “

Three footfalls passed, muted by the loose, sandy dirt. “Something happened. In Morien’s Pass.”

Rey sharply inhaled. “You shouldn’t have gone through there.”

“It was our only choice. There were spirits, or ghosts, or manifestations of the Dark side. I don’t know what to call them. I did – something. Chased them away? I don’t know how to describe it. There was all this light.”

“I’ve never heard about anything like that.”

“Me either.”

“Do you think you can do it again?”

“I don’t even know what it was I did. I was just so scared.”

As Finn and Rey drew closer to the obelisk, the druid sitting at the base noticed them and leapt to his feet. “Then get scared.”

“Already there.”

She threw out one hand, wrapping the druid in a hold. It wasn’t like grabbing the guards, who didn’t have one speck of Force-sensitivity in them. The druid’s eyes narrowed in concentration, arms hovering near his sides as he attempted to free himself. Her strength clashed against his – she was stronger, but he was trained. The druid started to slip in her gasp, one hand coming up like he was reaching for her throat. She saw the bleeding boy lift up his head to look at her and one eye widened; the other was swollen shut. Her anger, simmering up since she first sighted the boy, crashed to the surface at the sight of his brutalized face, and she overcame the druid in one merciless wave, feeling searing energy escape from her fingertips. The druid screamed and dropped to his knees. Within a few seconds, his skin turned a mottled red, rippling up with blisters before turning black and splitting open. He locked eyes with her, his mouth working to form words through his horror.

“What are you?” He rasped, before dissolving into another scream. His eyes bulged and bubbling blood poured out of his ears, nose, and mouth while smoke rose from him. His eyes exploded. Rey shrieked as the corpse flopped over with gaping eye sockets, liquefied brain matter dribbling out. She touched her face and found some of it along her jaw, squishy and hot. She dragged a sleeve across her face again and again until her skin started to burn. From the corner of her eye, she thought she saw the light of the weapon briefly falter and pulse.

Finn lightly grasped her wrist to stop her, flinching when his hand touched hers before jumping back. “What did you do?”

Rey shook uncontrollably, unable to rip her eyes away from the sight of the smoke still curling off the druid’s body. “I don’t know. I don’t know.”

“It’s like you boiled him alive.”

“I don’t know, I don’t know.” Rey’s voice rose towards a wail. Rey looked towards the boy, chained to the obelisk far over their heads. “How are we supposed to get up there?”

The boy answered her question, his voice frail and broken. “The other side.”

Finn scrunched his face at the boy. “What did he say?”

Rey was already dashing around the obelisk, met by the sight of steel pegs embedded in the rock at regular intervals up to the platform. She scrambled up with ease, jumping halfway to grab the edge of the platform and hoisting herself up. She had already snapped open one manacle before she realized that using her sword to break them open hadn’t even crossed her mind – she reached straight for the Force instead. He slumped across her shoulder when she broke the second manacle. As she turned her attention to his ankles she heard him murmur in her ear. “The moon come to rescue me with magic.”

“Wonderful. You’re crazy,” she muttered to herself.

The boy wheezed out a small laugh. “Your skin. I thought it was a ghost. You’re bright like the moon.”

Rey looked down at her arm. The glow of her skin now lightly shone through her sleeves when they emerged from her cloak. She shuddered and watched her own body warp in her vision. For a second she felt weightless. She pulled her arm back under her cloak and freed the last leg. “Can you hold onto my back?”

The boy’s head bobbed and he latched his arms around her neck. He was almost as tall as her, but felt barely heavier than a bundle of firewood as she climbed down.

“What’s your name?” She inquired.

“Esca.”

“I’m Rey. How old are you?”

“I’ll be 13 next month.”

She wanted to cry. The First Order had beat a child and hung him out to die as druids slowly drained his life from him.

“When I find who’s responsible for this, I am going to rip them apart,” she growled as her feet hit the ground.

“The red haired man,” Esca remarked. “He told everyone what to do.”

“General Hux,” Finn said, catching the last of their words where he waited for them at the base of the obelisk. “The red haired man is General Hux.”

“Then General Hux dies.” Rey glowered as she swung her sword up and pointed behind them.

“There are some people over there, Warren and Poe. They’re with the Resistance. Can you see them?”

Esca nodded.

“Go to them. They’re following behind and picking off druids, but there’s another group behind them blowing up the obelisks after we clear them out. You’ll be safer with them.”

“Marginally,” Finn muttered. Rey’s sharp glare hushed him. She was already turning to the next obelisk, sight narrowing down to the druid at the base, who was already climbing to her feet. The same heat simmered inside her, itching to free itself on her next enemy.

“Thank you, Rey,” Esca called out behind her. She halted mid stride to look over her shoulder, but he was already limping towards Warren and Poe.

Her fingers ached. When they reached the next druid, she didn’t even bother to hold her. She stretched out a hand, ready to let out her rage in one scalding burst. Two arrows in quick succession slammed into the druid, bristling from her chest. She slumped over onto her back, chest heaving as her lungs filled with blood. Finn and Rey both looked over their shoulders – Poe and Warren were smudges in the night, but Rey could see their bows held high. They must be getting bored, she mused.

An explosion sounded behind them and they jumped. It was the first obelisk, Chewie and the others had set off an explosive. Some of the smoke cleared and Rey saw the explosion had damaged barely more than half of the structure. It hadn’t occurred to her that maybe they wouldn’t be able to destroy the obelisks.

Rey hissed through her teeth in frustration. Everyone else in the area was alerted to their presence now. She grabbed Finn’s hand and pulled him towards Poe and Warren. “Come on! Change of plans.”

“Something wrong?” Poe asked.

“We’re not moving fast enough. Tell Chewie to split up. You, Warren, and Chewie work around the weapon clockwise, and Nettrick and Sparrow will follow Finn and I. Everyone already knows we’re here. We need to keep the element of surprise.”

Poe accepted her orders with comment, just nodded his head. He and Warren turned to find Chewie and the others.

Finn and Rey started off to the third obelisk. The druid there was already on his feet, arms outstretched and ready for them. Rey didn’t blink, stretching her arm out and letting the scorching energy fly off her fingertips. Like before, the druid screamed and collapsed in a heap, smoldering and charred. The light of the weapon grew noticeably dimmer. She didn’t pause, bounding off to their next target. Halfway there, the second explosion sounded. Then, the world swam in her vision and Rey was weightless again, like her body was dissolving into the atmosphere.

* * *

 

Finn looked on in mounting horror as Rey stalked towards the next druid and slaughtered him like she had the last, this time in mere seconds. He followed her in mute apprehension to the fourth obelisk. He dimly registered the sound of the explosion at the second obelisk – his attention was on Rey. She lurched on her feet, then gasped and swayed, her skin lighting up before she was enveloped in a white haze. He’d seen shapeshifters turn hundreds of times. He knew exactly what was happening. He stumbled back, waiting for her to come out the other side, an unrecognizable and bloodthirsty animal.

* * *

 

Rey wasn’t. And she was. Her world was white. And then pain dug into her, like her limbs were being ripped from her body.

_REY!_

The call came from inside her mind, jerking her back to earth like a kite string. It was Kylo, she was sure of it. She could feel him nearby. The pain disappeared and the world rushed back to her. She was on her knees, shaking, but solid. She looked at her arm. It wasn’t any brighter than when she rescued Esca. Ahead, Finn stared at her. Tears rolled down her cheeks.

“What’s happening to me?”

Finn slowly shook his head. “I’ve never seen anyone come back before.”

Rey just looked at him in stupefaction.

He swallowed. “Start to turn. And then stop.” He approached her slowly, reaching out a hesitant hand to help her up.

Rey sniffed, refusing to meet his gaze. “I didn’t know, Finn. You have to believe me. I had no idea.”

“I believe you.”

“I’m scared.”

He squeezed her hand before letting go. “It’ll be okay Rey. We’ll figure it out.”

“But the Resistance…” She trailed off, recalling Kylo’s warning about them.

“They’ll come around. It’s not your fault.”

Rey shook her head. “You don’t know how much they hate shapeshifters.”

Finn didn’t know what to say, instead offering Rey a feeble smile.

Spidery lines of light sliced through the air between the damaged obelisks and the one they stood next to. It arced, tendrils shooting out wildly. One blasted through Rey, throwing her several feet like a bolt of lightning. Her ears rang and residual pain spiked through her limbs. Dazed and laying on the ground, she could only whimper as she saw a bolt of energy streak towards Finn. It engulfed him. He stumbled a few steps and swatted his hands around like he was aiming for a fly. The energy split around him in the air and evaporated. He jumped to Rey’s side, helping her sit up as she groaned.

“That was incredible! Do you think,” she gasped around aching ribs, “That you can do that to the obelisks?”

Finn’s mouth twisted. “I don’t even know what I did, but I can try.”

He helped her up, letting her lean on his arm for a few seconds as they moved to the obelisk. He pressed one hand against it and closed his eyes. A long minute passed and Rey shuffled from foot to foot, looking around.

Finn heavily sighed and opened his eyes. “Nothing.”

Rey’s shoulders slumped. “Damn. I don’t think our explosives are going to take them down.”

Finn growled. “I don’t even know what it is I’m trying to do!” He shouted, slamming one fist against the stone. A shock rippled through the obelisk and it swayed. Rey gasped.

They both waited with held breath. The obelisk stopped moving. It looked the same.

Finn huffed. “We don’t have time for this. Let’s move on to the next one. Maybe killing the druids will be enough.”

An explosion chased his words, much farther away, then one closer to them. Her new plan must be working. The light of the weapon dimmed again, more this time, and the energy roiled inside it. She gave a lingering look at the immovable stone structure looming beside them before following Finn to the next target.

* * *

 

As Kylo approached the eastern wall, he heard an explosion, then saw the gate was wide open. Rey, no doubt. He had sent a Knight to find Hux and tell them the Resistance group was headed for the weapon, so he knew reinforcements weren’t far behind. He stomped through the gateway to survey the area below. He hated this place. The stench of terror, death, and carrion saturated the air. He avoided this side of the eastern wall as much as possible, because he could always smell the choking columns of smoke that rose from the wide chimneys of crematoriums near the prison compounds. The chimneys had been smoking day and night since Hux wiped out the capital. Anytime he came near to the weapon, the smoke clung to him for days, sticking to the inside of his mouth and lungs like dusty phantoms. He didn’t know how Hux could stand it.

He could tell several of the druids were already dead. They had attempted to blow up one of the obelisks, but it still stood. Rey was furious and she was channeling enough raw Force power to crush a normal man. Nearly at the gate, power blazed through Rey and their bond twisted and glowed in his mind. She was going to turn. He broken into a run, panicking. As he approached the edge of the basin that housed the weapon, he spotted Rey and FN-2187 near an obelisk. Another explosion rocketed through the basin and the weapon pulsed. The ex-Stormtrooper was a shadow in the red glow of the weapon and Rey was just a fuzzy mass of white light. He gasped, throwing open the barriers in his mind. Their bond flooded his consciousness and he was consumed by her thoughts. She hovered in between, where a shapeshifter was no longer human but not yet animal. He rallied every ounce of his strength and yanked on their bond as hard as he could, screaming at her through it.

  _REY!_

She snapped back, the white haze around her disappeared, and the bond shrank from his mind like a receding wave. He looked down into the valley again, this time seeing just two human forms, one glowing lightly. The wards between the obelisks were destabilizing, and wild energy spiked through the air, one catching Rey and throwing her to the ground. Another caught FN-2187. He waited for the man to go down in a smoldering pile of ash. No mere human could withstand that much energy. Instead, the energy blinked out, and he continued towards Rey, helping her up. A deep growl ripped out of Kylo’s throat. FN-2187 was their mystery Light druid. And he was doing things Kylo had never seen before. FN-2187 had failed their tests for Force-sensitivity. All Stormtroopers did. Kylo wasn’t even sure Snoke would know what this man was. His gauge of the man’s strength was wildly off-base. He had no idea what to expect from him.

Kylo took off in a quick jog towards them. He didn’t know what he was going to do when he got there, he just knew he needed to stop the Resistance from destroying the obelisks. And he needed to be where Rey was. Another obelisk blew, this time between him and Rey and he realized there was a second group, much closer. His focus was so narrowed on Rey that he didn’t feel the arrow coming until it was already slashing across the side of his thigh. He whipped his head around just in time to avoid another arrow through his shoulder. A wave of arrows followed, which he sent flying off course without a thought.

Crouched down behind the relative protection of a small dip in the earth were two figures. Kylo recognized one – Poe – but the other, a willowy, androgynous figure, was a stranger. Both loosed arrows in his direction. He reached out, ready to strangle the life from them, when he felt Hux and a large group of Stormtroopers approaching the gate. With a frustrated growl, he spun and headed back towards the gate, letting Poe and the other archer go free for the moment. A tiny part inside him sighed with relief. Behind him, another explosion rocked through the valley. He looked over his shoulder and watched in horror as an entire obelisk fell, right near where Rey and FN-2187 were a minute ago. Their explosives shouldn’t be strong enough to bring down an obelisk. He roared, suspecting somehow the traitorous Stormtrooper was responsible.

Kylo threw the gate open and Stormtroopers streamed through in uneven formations, led by Hux, who was missing his ridiculous, flapped black hat. Hux’s jaw was set harder than usual when Kylo reached his side.

“At least five druids are dead,” Kylo reported. “They attempted to blow several of the obelisks with minor success. The last attempt was successful.”

“Impossible,” Hux spat. His next words were interrupted by a deep rumbling. Both their gazes whipped to the far side of the weapon, where silver streaks webbed through the air. The weapon roiled with excessive energy.

“The damage to the obelisks is putting too much stress on the remaining wards,” Hux said, alarm creeping into his voice. Even as he said it, a burst of blinding light erupted from an obelisk as it was demolished by the energy of the weapon. Red light arched out of the central mass in long loops, striking the place where the destroyed obelisk had stood.

“What’s happening?” Hux demanded from Kylo.

Kylo gulped. “The energy is trying to escape.”

Hux took a step closer, lowering his voice so only Kylo could hear. “You say that like it’s a living thing.”

“It _is_ a living thing you idiot,” he hissed. “It’s made up of the life Force of thousands of people. You’ve been capturing and slaughtering innocent people for nearly five years. Some of their essence is still there, _inside_ it. And it’s furious. The only thing keeping all that energy from destroying us all are those obelisks and the druids that guard them.”

Hux gritted his teeth harder, watching the weapon rumble and expand. “The obelisks should be enough to contain it. You yourself helped designed this weapon.” His eyes flashed. He knew Kylo hated being reminded of it but Hux couldn’t read his reaction with Kylo’s mask on.

Kylo gave one sharp shake of his head. “No. You’ve been feeding it too much, too fast. The wards were already strained.”

“Why wouldn’t you tell me that?” Hux’s voice rose.

“Would you have listened to me?” Kylo immediately shot back.

Hux’s jaw ground again and he didn’t respond, his attention set on something over Kylo’s shoulder. “What is that?”

Kylo turned to follow his gaze and his stomach dropped. What Hux saw as a horde of people running towards them, Kylo saw as all the prisoners from the compound, some armed with weapons probably filched from dead Troopers. In front of the group, a bundle of Resistance members, including Poe, FN-2187, Rey, and his father.

Another explosion, at an obelisk nearer to them, was followed by heavy tremors in the earth. The weapon expanded again, flickering and pulsing, the energy taking on an orange glow. On the far side where the destroyed obelisk stood, the energy broke through the ward. More tremors followed, stronger this time. Kylo heard the distinct sound of earth crumbling and giving away as an entire sheet of the cliff at the farthest edge of the base fell away like ice in an avalanche. Distraught murmurs rose from the Stormtroopers around them and Kylo felt fear ripple through his Knights in the group. Screams from the approaching mob reached him as another quake grumbled and more rock sheared off, crashing to the ground and crushing nearby trees.

“Prepare to attack!” Hux screamed at his soldiers, turning away from Kylo. He snatched Hux’s arm in a tight grip. “Hux, we have to get out of here, now.”

Hux ripped his arm free. “I will not let the Resistance get away with this.”

“The weapon is going to explode and kill us all! We have to evacuate right now.”

Hux just glared at Kylo and strode away. Kylo growled. Of all the times for Hux to be irrational and stubborn, this was the worst. Kylo headed the opposite direction, picking up speed and launching himself at the top of the wall in a smooth motion. His boots thudded onto the stone walkway and he surveyed the valley below. The rest of the Resistance group had joined the makeshift prisoner army and the Stormtroopers pulled into formation, marching resolutely towards them with Hux at the front, red light glinting off his drawn sword.

Mayhem overtook the valley all at once. The weapon boomed again, and Kylo shuddered as the wall swayed. The energy engulfed nearly ten wards at a time, burning up the guarding druids in seconds. The rest, he saw, were streaming towards the wall. Smoke rose as trees simply burst into flames from the searing heat of the weapon’s energy. A yawning gulf opened up in the earth, rapidly swallowing up ground. The Resistance and the escaped prisoners met the Stormtroopers in a furious clash.

* * *

 

Rey toppled their fifth druid when she sighted a large crowd of people rapidly approaching.

“Han!” She cried out, tugging on Finn’s arm. “They did it! They got the prisoners out!” Many of them carried weapons, others simply had boards ripped from buildings, still studded with nails, pitchforks, or long shards of jagged glass wrapped with ripped fabric on one end. Finn and Rey rushed towards them, falling in next to Han, Stryker, and Torr as they all jogged back towards the gate.

“We got at least six druids down, and tried to blow up four obelisks,” Rey reported to Han.

“Tried?” He grimaced.

“The explosives weren’t enough.”

Ahead of them, an explosion boomed, and they watched with wide eyes as an obelisk swayed, then completely fell over, reduced to rubble.

“That’s the one you touched,” Rey gushed to Finn.

On the opposite side of the explosion, spikes of energy like the ones that caught Rey and Finn sliced through the air, and the weapon erupted with life.

Finn whooped. “It’s working!”

They met Nettrik, Sparrow, and Esca, shortly followed by Chewie. He ran up to them with a triumphant string of mumbled roars, gesturing at the toppled obelisk and the destabilizing weapon. He swept Rey off her feet in a crushing hug as she shrieked, setting her down mid-stride. She laughed breathlessly. It was really going to work. Poe and Warren ran up and another explosion sounded, the last obelisk swaying from the impact. The two of them waved wildly towards the gate.

“We have company!” Warren shouted at them and Rey saw a huge group of Stormtroopers assembled inside the gate. Even with the prisoners, they were outnumbered at least five to one, and many of the prisoners weren’t even armed. She knew a good chunk were like Esca – practically children. She wondered if the group included actual children or if the First Order had sent the children elsewhere.

Her breath caught in her throat when she sighted Kylo, who seemed to be arguing with a tall man. A man with red hair. Bile rose in her throat – he must be General Hux, the one responsible for the destruction of an entire city. Heat rose in her hands, vibrating in her fingertips. Images of the man slumped over on the ground, brains oozing from his eyes like the druids she killed forced themselves into her mind and she swallowed hard. Behind the prisoners came the sound of rock giving way and crashing to the ground. Several prisoners wailed as entire portions of the cliffs crumbled away in huge sheets.

They were barely 50 yards from the Stormtroopers when the ground trembled, bucking underneath them like a living thing. Over her shoulder, Rey watched the weapon escape the boundaries of the wards, pulverizing obelisks as it pushed outwards. The ground opened up into a gaping hole and Rey gasped. “Han!” She cried, pointing towards the widening pit. He merely set his jaw and shook his head, then urged everyone to pick up the pace.

As they drew closer to the Troopers, Rey reached for the lightsaber still strapped to her hip. She’d almost forgotten about it. With a deep breath, she drew it, gripping the intricately engraved hilt in her hand. She imagined the blue blade slicing through her enemies and instantly, the saber blade burst into existence with an otherworldly hum. Several people nearby gasped and pointed at her. She reached further into the Force, letting it engulf her. Energy surged to the surface, and her skin erupted in light, casting a silver glow on the figures around her. A second later, they reached striking distance, and no one had time to think about anything else than the Stormtrooper in front of them. The heat in Rey’s hands threatened to scorch her skin and she didn’t try to hold it back. She flung one palm towards the nearest Trooper, and he dropped to his knees, screaming. So did several soldiers on either side. She didn’t wait, swinging her attention to the next closest soldiers. Even as she dropped soldier after soldier, they surged towards her, cutting her off from her friends. Surrounded, they advanced towards her. She barred her teeth at them, growling. One hesitated, and she lunged for him, slicing diagonally through his body in an overpowered swing. He fell into two pieces. Rey whipped back to the soldiers ringing her. Now they all hesitated. Rey didn’t.

* * *

 

From atop the wall, Kylo drew power to him, ready to throw as many people as he could to the ground, clearing an easy path for the soldiers to cut them down. Then he saw Rey as she ran up to the Troopers. He froze, hand still out, mesmerized, as several dropped to their knees. She was nearly blinding, light and heat radiating off her as she cut down soldier after soldier without pausing. Prisoners fell into the gap she left behind her as she battled towards the gate. A few more minutes of this and Rey would singlehandedly even the odds.

The weapon roared again, and red light exploded upwards, towers of energy shooting several stories into the air. Another group of obelisks disintegrated in a flash of red light. Kylo jumped off the wall as it swayed and groaned, shouting for everyone to get clear of it. The earth rolled, and half the wall collapsed as the force of the earthquake ripped through the mortar.

He sighted Hux, screaming the other man’s name and indiscriminately flinging people out of his way to get to him.

“We have to get out of here NOW!”

Hux glared at him before raising a battle horn to his lips and sounding the sharp notes of retreat. No one hesitated, turning and bolting for the gate. The earth continued to crumble apart, remaining obelisks falling into the void. The weapon exploded, a massive ring of energy racing outwards from it. Trees splintered in its wake and the ground shredded as if enormous talons ripped through it. The people closest to the weapon didn’t even have time to scream, they simply vanished into a pile of ashes. The energy punched holes through the bodies of the next layer, leaving hundreds writhing on the ground in pain. Everyone abandoned their fighting and simply ran for the wall, scrambling over the fallen stones. By the time the energy of the weapon reached him and Hux, its power was diluted. Still, it blew through with enough force to throw everyone nearby to the ground. Kylo went flying and laid on his back for one second, feeling like his very bones were bruised from the inside out. He fought off the pain, stumbling to his feet and searching for Rey, but he didn’t see her in the chaos.

* * *

 

Rey refused to crawl over the crumbled wall until she found all her friends. Nettrick and Stryker came jogging up, looking bruised and scratched, but otherwise fine. Finn appeared by her side, sword raised and waiting for a Stormtrooper, but they all ignored them, rushing out as fast as they could. Poe came into view, dwarfed by Chewie, who cradled the motionless form of Esca in his arms.

“No!” Rey gasped, tears already pricking her eyes.

“It’s okay, he’s still alive,” Finn assured her. She didn’t ask how he knew. Warren came limping up behind them, stopping only to ask about Stryker.

“She and Nettrick just passed. I don’t think she’s injured.”

Warren gasped with relief, pressing a hand against a deep gash in her side. Blood leaked out around her hand. Rey eyed her wound and Warren shook her head. “I’ll live. If we get out of here in time, that is.” Warren continued on, calling out over her shoulder “Han’s on his way out too.”

Rey slumped as unconscious tension fled her, not realizing how worried she was. A second later, Han jogged up, followed by significantly smaller group of prisoners. The earth shook and they all stumbled.

“We have to get out of here!” Han shouted at them. His eyes scanned Rey up and down, assessing her.

“I’m fine,” she said as she fell into step beside him. Rey caught his quiet sigh of relief, which she was sure he thought she couldn’t hear. “Where’s Sparrow and Torr?”

Han just shook his head, not meeting her eyes. They ran in somber silence, Rey pondering the loss of their friends.

They had barely cleared what remained of the eastern wall when that entire section of the base collapsed into the vast fissure. Halfway across the base, Asher cantered towards them on horseback, attempting to keep her seat as her horse tossed his head and half-reared with fright. Rey swallowed past a lump in her throat, thinking of Evie, wondering if she’d ever see her again.

“Veris has horses for you on the other side of the main gate! Everyone’s gone, they’re just running. What’s happening?”

“Weapon exploded, started an earthquake. This whole base is going to be gone in a few minutes,” Han succinctly explained. Asher paled, looking in the direction of the eastern wall.

“Go!” Han yelled at her. “We’ll meet you on the other side!”

Finn grabbed Han’s arm as they ran. “What about the squire we left behind with BB-8? They’re still outside the southern ward.”

Han scowled. “Hopefully he’ll have the good sense to get out of there.”

Finn blanched. “He’ll have to go through Morien’s Pass alone. He’ll never make it. I’m going to get him.”

“What makes you think you can get through that ward by yourself?” Han snapped.

Finn set his jaw. “I can do it. I know I can. We’ll swing around and meet you outside the main gates.”

“Finn, no! Please stay with us.” Rey grabbed his arm, forcing him to stop.

He pulled her into a tight hug. “We’ll be fine Rey. I can feel it. I’ll see you again.”

He didn’t wait for either to respond, sharply turning left and heading for the southern ward. Rey watched after him with tears in her eyes, hanging onto the hope in his words.

“C’mon, kid, we have to get out of here.”

Rey tried to nod her head, following a step behind Han.

As they drew towards the main gates, Rey spotted Kylo standing atop the wall near a tower, unmoving. She noticed Han stiffen beside her. “You go on, Rey, there’s something I have to do.”

“What? Han?” Rey stopped, but the older man was already jogging towards the door to the tower. Kylo watched Han enter the tower, then turned his attention to the door that opened to the walkway atop the wall, waiting for him to emerge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I already have the next chapter written and ready to go. *Dances a merry jig* I'll put it up in a few days! (That's a lie, probably tomorrow, because I hate waiting for things.)


	21. Chapter 21

Kylo stood on the walkway of the main wall, scanning the fleeing people for Rey. He could feel her moving towards him. Across the base he watched buildings, trees, and towers falling away as the earth continued to collapse and widen. Every instinct screamed at him to run, but he fought it, determined to find Rey and make sure she made it out.

She came into view, practically sprinting for the wall. Han was with her. His father tensed when he spotted Kylo, and with a word to Rey, broke off from her, running towards the tower closest to Kylo. Rey froze in place, but Kylo wasn’t looking at her anymore, eyes instead glued at the tower door as he waited for his father to emerge. He pushed the door open, hesitating briefly in the shadow of the doorway. Then he took several steps towards Kylo.

“Ben!” His shout seemed to drown out the cacophony around them. Han walked towards Kylo with slow, uncertain steps. _Unwilling,_ Kylo thought sullenly. He was sharply aware of Rey emerging from the door behind Han. He could feel her bewilderment and terror keenly. She was terrified for Han, he realized. Then, beneath that fear, another layer. She was afraid for him, too. Kylo roughly shoved away the feelings, slamming down barriers in his mind between them.

* * *

 Rey stood rooted to the ground, eyes skipping between the tower door and Kylo. Han emerged a moment later, facing Kylo with squared shoulders. A warning died in her throat as she waited for Kylo to pounce on Han. But he didn’t.

It took Rey a second to make a decision. She ran towards the wall and followed Han. She pounded up the stairs, bursting through the door. Han and Kylo were much farther away than before, Han taking slow steps towards Kylo, who responded with a few, swaying steps back. She crouched against the side of the wall, eyes on Kylo. She noticed his gaze flicker towards her before settling back on Han.

“Take off that mask, Ben, you don’t need it!” Han shouted at Kylo.

Rey’s brow furrowed and her mind scrambled.

“What do you think you’ll see?” Kylo’s tone was cool and haughty.

“The face of my son.” Han's voice brimmed with resolve.

Rey’s stomach dropped as realization clicked into place. Her shock echoed through her mind, bouncing off Kylo’s presence. Fear raced through her. She tentatively reached for his emotions, trying to grasp what was going on. But he was all walled up, she could barely feel anything. She crept closer to the wall and froze in her crouch, watching father and son. Kylo slowly pulled his helmet off and dropped it with a heavy thud.

* * *

 Han continued towards Kylo, arms outstretched for balance as the wall shuddered with dull blasts from the collapse of the weapon. Kylo waited for him to approach, forcing himself to stand atop the wall as casually as if he were safely on the ground. A quiet voice within him whined for his father’s presence, yearned to see his face up close, to speak to him. The rest of Kylo curled with disgust and hatred.

Then he was ten again, begging his father not to send him away to live with Uncle Luke. Promise after promise to be good, to maintain control. Kylo choked on his anger but his chest twisted. He took off his helmet, letting it fall onto the stones next to him. Han swayed on his feet, shocked, then swallowed, and took a step further. Blasts of hot wind from the growing fires whipped their hair.

“You don’t belong here. Snoke’s using you for your power. He’s going to control you until he has no more use for you and then destroy you. You can’t trust him.”

_I don’t,_ Kylo wanted to tell him. Instead he lied. “No. The Supreme Leader is wise and powerful. He showed me how weak and foolish the Resistance is. He told me the truth of my grandfather. He taught me power and strength. I trust him with my life.”

Han’s face tightened in a scowl. “Snoke and the First Order are pure evil. They bring death and tyranny into the land.”

“They bring order to the chaos the Republic can’t subdue,” Kylo spat, no longer speaking dishonestly.

“I know there is still Light in you. You can’t believe this is the way to peace.”

Kylo pursed his lips and Han knew he hit a pocket of truth.

Han’s face suddenly softened. “Come home with me,” he insisted.

Kylo reeled, barely schooling his features into neutrality. Unexpected tears clogged his throat.

“I can’t come back,” Kylo responded automatically, so low Han almost missed his words. “It’s too late.”

“No, it’s not. Please, we miss you.”

Resentment flared as the memory of his parents bundling him on a horse and handing the reins off to his uncle as he sobbed flooded his mind. Kylo’s voice was hoarse and bitter. “You abandoned me.”

“We were frightened.” Kylo watched Han’s eyes widen momentarily as he realized that was the wrong thing to say.

Kylo barked out a harsh laugh. “That’s right, frightened of your own son. I was ten. Didn’t you think _I_ was frightened? I needed you. And you left me. Sent me away to live with a stranger. And then –” His words choked off.

Han glanced away. The shame and remorse rolled off his father in thick waves. Remorse for what happened to Kylo. He blamed himself. And yet, shame, because he didn’t truly regret sending him away. Han licked his lips. “Your mother and I both know that was a mistake,” he implored.

“A mistake,” Kylo scoffed. His eyes blazed. “ _You don’t._ I can feel it, you would do the same thing all over again. You didn’t want to protect me, you wanted to protect yourself. You’re still frightened.” As if to prove his words, Kylo took a heavy step towards his father, who immediately raised his crossbow to firing level and shrank back to maintain the space between them. Even though he expected it, Han’s reaction stung him, needling the deepest, rawest part of him in a way nothing else did. His own father was terrified of him, hated him, was ready to harm him without thought. Darkness churned within him, and Kylo reached into its depths, savoring the heady rush of power that gripped him. His lightsaber was in his hand in an instant, bursting to life. It bathed Kylo’s face in red light. Without thought, he swiped through the air at his father’s chest. Han jumped back, barely maintaining his balance.

Rey’s alarm trumpeted through the fog of Kylo’s fury, but it was brief, and easily drowned out by the power of the Dark side screaming through him. In an instant, Han slung his crossbow across his back, trading it for his sword. Kylo sneered. It would break like hot butter on a knife.

“Do you really think I would just come running back to you after everything? You are nothing to me, Han Solo,” Kylo spat, his voice ice and hate. He swept his weapon up to ready position. Han’s face crumpled with rising despair and Kylo wavered, his blade flickering in and out as his thoughts raged in every direction. Han took another step closer, his sword hovering near his side, offering him little protection. A soft, warm emotion spread off Han, settling around Kylo like a light cloak. Love. He physically shuddered, trying to shrug off the feeling. But still it came. His father was conflicted as he was.

“Ben?” Han’s face was open, pleading, begging Kylo to be his son again.

His lightsaber blinked out. Tears shimmered in his eyes. Han stepped closer, barely a few feet away. “What am I supposed to do, Father?” The word was heavy in his mouth. “Do you really think I can go back?” he whispered. Han opened his mouth, uncertainty creeping into his face. Memories assaulted him. There was a reason Kylo left the Resistance. Kylo flinched away. “You don’t think I can come back. Not truly.” He bit the inside of his cheek, quaking with anger. Warm blood seeped between his teeth and he tasted iron and salt. The animal inside him clawed to the surface, growling to life. He hated FN-2187 for running away, for bringing the wrath of Snoke and his Knights down upon Agé-de, and dragging Rey into the path of the First Order. He hated Rey for escaping, for not listening to him, for rejecting the safety and protection he offered her. He hated Snoke for being absent when they needed him the most. And he hated his father, who set him on his course to the First Order fifteen years ago. “This,” he snarled, “is your fault. Everything is your fault.”

The rumble of the collapsing earth grew closer, and Kylo’s mouth and nose clogged with smoke as what remained of the base caught fire. He stepped closer to his father, lightsaber growling to life again. This time Han didn’t retreat.

“Let me fix it,” Han pleaded.

A tear broke the edge of Kylo’s eye and he let out a shuddering breath, barely constraining the hate that urged him to strike out and dig his lightsaber into his father’s chest.

He let his arm drop to his side, and the blade extinguished. “I’m being torn apart,” he choked out. “I want to be free of this pain.”

Han stepped closer again. “Then come back with us. Please. Things are different. I'll make them understand." Han’s hand stretched towards Kylo’s, the hand still gripping his lightsaber. His father’s hand closed around his, and Kylo didn’t fight him.

Suddenly the entire wall violently swayed, and they both spun towards the sound of Rey’s cries, Han releasing Kylo's hand. The part of the wall nearest Han began to give way. Kylo watched his father tilt precariously towards the huge drop to the ground. Han was still within reach. But Kylo just watched. He watched as the stones under his father’s feet gave way, and Han fell backwards. At the very last second a cry escaped Kylo’s lip and he reached for his father, but it was too late. Han dropped into the gray nothingness of the smoke and dust.

A gut-renching howl of grief rose from the murk on the outside of the wall, and then Kylo’s side exploded in pain. He was flung against one edge of the walkway, disoriented. The enormous arrow of a Wookiee’s bowcaster protruded from one side. With a roar he ripped it out, and the sharp edge of the arrowhead scraped against his ribs. Blood bloomed around the wound, quickly soaking his robes. He grit his teeth, pressing one hand against his side. With the other he gripped his lightsaber and lurched to his feet. Across the split of the wall, he sighted Rey, clinging to the side of the walkway and staring over the edge where Han had fallen, in horror. She turned her head and met his gaze. Tears streaked her face, carving clean lines down her cheeks through the grime and smoke that clung to her skin. With a look of revulsion, she disappeared into the tower, fleeing from him. He snarled. He had to get Rey and then they had to get out. He gritted his teeth against the oncoming pain, and then stepped off the wall, falling through the air in the direction Rey had disappeared.

* * *

 Finn and Jaden, the rescued squire, atop BB-8, rushed through the forest towards the main gate. Finn had found the ward barely functional and broke through with ease to find both the young man and Poe’s horse terrified. They ran out of Morien’s Pass as quickly as BB-8 would take them and then looped around, trying to avoid Stormtroopers and other First Order soldiers who rushed away from the base. They found the rest of the Resistance not far from the main gate, clustered in a thick stand of trees. Everyone was atop horses Veris and Asher had stolen from the stables, and Veris directed him towards a muscular bay. Two horses were riderless. Finn recognized one, a large, black horse, as the one Kylo was riding when he kidnapped Rey.

“Han and Rey?” Finn asked the group, but he already knew the answer. Warren shook her head. “We can’t wait much longer.”

Finn huffed, looking in the direction of the main gate. “You guys go, I’m going to wait for them. Go for the Resistance base.”

Chewie, atop the most massive draft horse Finn had ever seen, made his way to Finn’s side, grumbling at him and then pointing at the wall. Finn sighed and nodded his head, assuming Chewie meant to stay with him. Veris handed them the reins to the horses for Rey and Han and everyone nodded at Chewie and Finn with grim faces.

“May the Force be with you,” Poe said to Finn, staring at him even as the group turned and trotted into the forest.

Finn and Chewie walked until the main gate came into view. What looked like an empty moat separately them from the wall. Even with the moat between, tThe wall towered above them. They could barely see two figures atop the wall in a stand-off. Through the shifting smoke, Finn reocnigzed Han and Kylo Ren. He’d never seen Ren without his mask, and the man’s young features jolted him. Kylo’s lightsaber flickered a furious red through the fog of the burning base. Finn had an arrow aimed at Kylo in a second, but Chewie’s hand shot out and forced his bow down. He looked at Chewie in anger, but the burly man just calmly shook his head at him before turning his attention back to the two men. Finn searched the wall for Rey and his heart sunk when he didn’t see her anywhere.

Finn waited in tense agony, trying to prepare himself for Kylo to reach out with his lightsaber and stab Han, but it didn’t happen. They were just _talking._ Finn’s jaw dropped when Han wrapped his hand around Kylo’s. Then the ground rumbled, and the entire wall swayed and buckled. Han careened towards the crumbling stones, and Kylo watched. Han fell backwards off the wall, disappearing into the quickly rising smoke.

Chewie roared so loudly Finn’s ears ached, sighting Kylo along his bowcaster and releasing an arrow before Finn barely registered what was happening. The arrow struck Ren in the side and he fell backwards, out of view. Finn studied Chewie, he knew the Wookiee was an excellent marksman. Kylo Ren should be dead right now, with a bowcaster arrow in his heart. Finn didn’t have time to think about it. Chewie surged forwards towards the wall, in the direction Han fell. Finn followed him more carefully, picking through the ruins. Not far from the destroyed segment of the wall, a dust-covered form was splayed against the rubble, blood leaking from the corner of his mouth.

“Han!” Finn cried. They both jumped from their horses and rushed to his side. Chewie carefully picked Han up and Finn lowered his ear to Han’s face, listening, feeling for the presence of life. He gasped. “He’s still alive!”

Chewie roared mournfully and rose to his feet, making sure not to jostle Han. Blood gushed from a deep wound on the back of his head. Chewie wrapped his head with cloth ripped from his cloak in an attempt to stop the bleeding. The ground rumbled again and the rest of the wall started to sway dangerously towards them. Finn just looked at Chewie and they both nodded.

Finn sighed deeply, looking over his shoulder as they rode away from the wall. He knew he’d see Rey again. He had to believe it.

* * *

 Rey raced through the woods, breaths coming in painful gasps. Again and again, she saw Han toppling off the wall. Kylo just watching him. Han’s face as he watched his son let him die. Kylo reaching out at the last second, when it was far too late. Tears smeared the forest into shades of dull green. The sun had risen at some point, but it barely struggled through a thick cover of clouds that threatened rain. Distantly, she felt Kylo following her. Furious, she picked up her pace, trying to outrun him.

She broke through a clearing into a meadow of tall grasses. Her heart sunk and her legs wobbled. At the far end of the meadow, the ground dropped away. She had run straight to the edge of a cliff. She growled and wiped tears from her eyes, turning to run back and look for a different path. She could hear the barks and howls of shapeshifters deep in the forest and remembered she was a fugitive to the First Order. She would never forget the look on General Hux’s face when she sighted him through the crowd of Stormtroopers, bodies piling up around her. She would be hunted. She scrambled up a tree, hoping to find a way out. Somehow she had to find Finn and the others still.

From the top branches, she saw the First Order base to the west, or what was left of it. A giant crater had replaced nearly everything. A thick cloud of smoke rose from the area. Fear stirred in Rey. The autumn forest was dry, a forest fire would rage uncontrollably, spreading quickly across the area. The river to the east was probably not wide enough to stop it. The trees were too thick for her to see anything in the forest, much less find her friends. She dropped to the ground and fresh despair bubbled up. She sank against a tree, pressing her palms against her eyes to ward off tears as she tried to think about what to do. All she could see was Han, falling again and again.

Sorrow swept over her, and her skin glinted brighter. She shook like she was caught in a blizzard. Light engulfed her, and Rey remembered what happened in the First Order base. She’d almost turned, but she came back, through no doing of her own. As the world disappeared and she became weightless, one last, desperate thought flooded her mind.

_“KYLO!”_

* * *

 

Rey’s cry was a knife in his mind, laced with panic. She was about to turn again. Like before, he opened his mind entirely to her, yanking on their bond as hard as he dared. She floated back to earth. Her emotions washed over him, bathing him in sharp fury and loss. She was thinking about Han. She was lost. She was terrified. His heart squeezed. He had to find her. She wasn’t far. He ran faster, closing in.

* * *

Rey slammed back into the earth, gasping as she was drawn back into her body. Kylo wasn’t far. Her fury burned, this time directed at herself. She’d lost control, and she’d reached for him. She felt sick. He’d killed Han. He’d killed his father. She hated him. She needed him.

She ran, zigzagging through the woods, but she didn’t know where she was going. He swiftly caught up with her, and Rey heard snapping twigs and the crash of underbrush behind her. She stopped thinking about where she was going and spun to face him, waiting with lightsaber in hand. It hummed, vibrant and blue without a thought.

Kylo slowed as he approached Rey. She was shaking still, skin alight under her red cloak, lightsaber in one hand. He reached out towards her in what he hoped was a soothing manner.

“Rey, please put your lightsaber away.”

“You killed your father,” she growled.

“I didn’t,” he protested, but his face disagreed with his words.

“You’re a monster,” she spat through clenched teeth. He flinched. Without warning she lunged at him. He jumped to the side, but not before her blade singed a corner of his cloak. She swung again, towards his face. He blocked her blade with unnecessary force, shoving her several steps back. He deflected blow after blow, responding with a few half-hearted swipes of his own in the direction of her lightsaber. Every swing she took, aimed for a fatal blow, stoked his indignation. He angled his swings hard, forcing her to retreat every time they traded blows.

Rey could feel Kylo’s growing resentment towards him. The closer he got, the clearer his emotions grew, outlining into distinct sentiments. He was angry she’d turned down the protection of the First Order. She scoffed. If he thought she’d ever say yes to that, he was mad. As he easily blocked yet another swing at his neck, she glimpsed the storm blazing in his eyes. He threw her blows off with obvious frustration and Rey realized he was mad at  _her_. 

What few wild creatures lived in the woods fled past Rey and Kylo as they fought. When a flock of birds took the sky with shrieks of alarm, Rey spared a glimpse up and sighted the wall of smoke floating their direction. The birds were running from the approaching forest fire. Her distraction nearly cost her footing. Kylo struck out at her shins with his thickly treaded boots and Rey tumbled to one side to avoid his kick, felled branches snapping against her arm and back as she rolled to her feet. She paused in a half crouch for one second, long enough for him to scowl at her, before turning and fleeing. The trees ahead were thinning. She heard him pacing after her, stomping through brambles with unhurried steps. As she broke through the tree line, she realized why. He’d hedged them back to the same grassy meadow at the edge of the same cliff she’d just ran from.

She spun, bringing her lightsaber up. “Are you insane?” She screamed at him.

His smirk held no small hint of madness. “You can’t run, Rey! It’s just us now.”

“We’re at the edge of a cliff with a forest fire at our backs!”

He responded by advancing upon her. She feinted and dodged, trying to weave around him, but his crackling lightsaber seemed to be everywhere at once. He had her against the cliff within minutes.

Rey was aware of the drop of the cliff behind her like a thousand screaming voices in her ears. She swung at him, throwing every ounce of strength she had left into her arms as Kylo’s saber bore down on hers, gritting her teeth in a vicious grimace.

With their blades crossed, they were inches from each other. Kylo leaned into his grip and his towering frame filled her vision. Rey had never felt so small. She growled at him with fresh anger.

“You have no choice but to join the First Order.”

Rey almost laughed. “I will die on your blade before that happens.”

His saber advanced a hairsbreadth towards her face. They stared at each other while strong drafts from the cliffs buffeted against them. Lightening flashed, followed swiftly by a crack of thunder. Sheets of rain fell from the sky, soaking them.

“You have to let me go,” she furiously demanded, spitting out the water streaming into her mouth. “I know you won’t kill me.”

He was silent, and then the words seem to burst out of him, insistent and almost imploring. “Stay with me.”

Her brows knit together and her eyelashes fluttered in bewilderment.

“I can show you the ways of the Force.”

His overture swirled in Rey’s head and his dark eyes reflected the red and blue of their blades in brilliant violet intensity as he watched her grapple with his unexpected offer.

“The Force,” she breathed, pulling that thread of opportunity out of her chaotic mind. Her eyelids slid shut as she retreated into herself, stretching out for the river of power she’d nearly forgotten about. She jumped into the Force, and let herself disappear in the current.

Kylo stilled at he watched her, entranced. Rivulets ran delicately down her skin and her eyes jumped beneath her eyelids, like she was dreaming, her strained features loosening. Rey’s eyes flew open, met with Kylo’s face, his stare intent and almost hopeful. She bared her teeth in an animalistic snarl and shoved him back, blade scraping against his in a flurry of sparks as she whirled away. He got his saber up just in time to block a series of furious blows from Rey. With a jarringly powerful swing, Rey knocked his blade to the right, stretching his body against the wound on his left side. Kylo cried out and stumbled to his knees as her blue blaze sizzled through cloak and flesh on his left thigh. He struggled up, swiping desperately with one arm towards her body before she lunged and thrust the tip of her saber through his left shoulder. He blocked her next swing, but at the cost of his balance. As he rocked on his heels, she kicked a foot into his chest, throwing him onto his back, breath knocked out of him. He dragged himself to his feet, one eye on Rey as she stalked around him with predatory steps. He swung and she rushed in, batting away his weak blow before grabbing his right wrist. He responded in-like, locking onto her sword arm, and they grappled with each other in mirrored motions. Rey felt his panting, his breaths wheezing in and out of his injured chest. She glanced at his face, and immediately wished she hadn’t. Without the glare of sabers reflecting in them, his brown eyes looked almost black. Their liquid depths snared her entirely. She felt Kylo’s presence hovering around her own. It was distorted and unsteady, his power buzzing against hers like their blades did. A sensation that was becoming far too familiar swept over her, with shivers down her back and energy crackling in her limbs. Kylo felt it too, she could see him shiver along with her, and the few inches between them felt charged.

Kylo was drowning. He wouldn’t be able to hold out against Rey much longer, he was exhausted and injured, and she was flush with renewed power that she seemed to pull from endlessly. He felt everything—the tight circle of Rey’s hand around his wrist, the throbbing ache in his side, the handful of fresh injuries, the chill air gusting from the cliffs and freezing the sweat on his body—but it was a whisper in comparison to the howl in his head. The horrifying realization that he killed his own father echoed through him still, peppered by both anger and relief. His mind, as always, chanted a steady list of things he did wrong, fueling his self-hatred.

Rey and Kylo’s heads turned simultaneously towards shouts and the baying of shapeshifters from within the forest. Their eyes met and Rey was stunned by his sudden wave of panic.

“My Knights will be upon us in minutes,” he barked roughly, shaking her forearm.

“Then let me go,” Rey pleaded.

“I can’t do that.”

The words slipped out before Rey knew what they were, her voice somewhere between confessing a wish and giving him a command.

“Come with me.”

Kylo blinked slowly, searching her hazel eyes for understanding. Rey’s mouth parted, shocked by her own admission. A voice in her mind frantically railed against her own words, but she continued.

“Right now. Leave with me. Don’t go back to the First Order.”

Hope faintly flickered in his eyes before they narrowed. “You mean go back to the Resistance. I’ll be executed within the day.”

The shouts and barks grew louder. Rey dropped her grip on his wrist, instead grabbing his good shoulder and gave him a shake. “You can’t go back to the First Order.” She peered deeply into his eyes. “I know you’d rather be dead than go back to Snoke. I can feel it.”

“I’d rather be dead than go back to the Resistance,” Kylo said with a feral growl. “I’m as good as dead if I go back.”

Rey’s fierce countenance broke, fear bleeding through. “Kylo, if you’re right, if I’m—if I’m what you think…” Rey sharply shook her head and swallowed. Her voice was harsh, agonized. “I’m a shapeshifter. If what you say about the Resistance is true—“

Kylo roughly interrupted her. “You know it is, General Organa won’t welcome you back with open arms, she’ll sign the order for your death.”

Rey curled her hand around a fistful of his cloak, her fierceness returning. “I don’t believe that, Kylo. I refuse to turn to the First Order, and I refuse to let you go back. If the Resistance means death, then we will find another way.”

“Another way,” he repeated, murmuring. Hope flared in Kylo’s eyes again. She tumbled headfirst into his eyes, letting herself be swept along by his emotions. He was as horrified as she was that he let Han die. Maybe more.

“There’s still Light in you,” Rey whispered to him. She offered the fragile words up to him with absolute certainty.

He stepped away, feet toeing the edge of the cliff, then stretched a gloved hand to her.

Her gaze grew frantic, leaping past the sheer drop to a landing so far below, the trees were toy-like.

“I didn’t mean we _kill ourselves_!” She hissed at him.

“I know,” he replied with a cool confidence. “Do you trust me?”

“Of course not,” she snapped, but stepped closer to his offered hand.

“Trust me this time.”

As she took his hand, Stormtroopers and shapeshifters burst from the forest into the meadow. She inhaled sharply, squeezing the slippery leather of his gloves. He curled one arm around her waist, drawing her firmly to his chest and setting her feet on top of his. She wrapped both arms around his neck, one hand still clenching the hilt of her saber. She turned her eyes, letting Kylo’s face eclipse the view of their approaching enemy on one side and the dizzying precipice on the other. Together they took a deep breath. He jumped.


	22. Chapter 22

Every second carved itself into her memory. The weight of Kylo’s arm cemented around her slender waist. Every pulse of her heart beating against his. The flap of rushing air whipping her cloak. The warmth of his still blood-seeped side. Cold rain racing along the skin of her forehead. Her body ached, begging her to lean into his chest, close her eyes, and fall forever.

His arm tightened roughly around her before they jolted in the air, their descent slowing in jagged spurts. Kylo’s shoulders shook as he tried to control their fall, but his strength faltered. The ground rushed towards them too quickly. Kylo felt her reaching for the Force and knocked her away.

“Don’t try to help, you’ll rip us apart and we’ll fall at different rates.”

“You’re not strong enough!”Her shout was nearly swallowed by the air screaming past, but her lips brushed the hollow of his neck.

With a deep breath, Rey instead reached for the Force again, then stretched into their bond, pushing down whatever feeble barriers she’d tried to pull up. Something shifted, and Kylo shuddered as her strength rushed into him.  Rey settled, relinquishing control of the Force, surrendering her hold to him. Kylo almost recoiled. She didn’t know how much power she’d just given him, how dangerous this was. He could cut her off from the Force entirely in this state, subject her to whatever whim he willed. _I’ll teach her later_ , he promised himself, rejecting the part of him that relished the opportunity to maintain total control.

Rey was naked, her mind laid out bare for Kylo to pick through. But he kept his distance, averting his focus to slowing their fall. The ground met them, and Rey’s chest compressed as they hit the rocks. He released her swiftly, almost roughly, setting her down and retreating several steps. Rey sucked in a heavy breath; their land was hard, but not enough to injure. Kylo was hunched over with hands braced on his knees, grimacing in pain. Her arm twitched up to reach for him but he straightened and stepped farther away.

“We have to move,” he said, words gritting and hard.

“We have to deal with that.” Rey pointed at his injured side.

“Later. We need to get as far away as possible.”

“We just jumped off a cliff. I think we can spare a few minutes.”

He glared. “No. My Knights will easily be able to track me and pass it along to Hux. They saw us jump, there’s no doubt they know I’ve deserted.” His face darkened. “Snoke already knows.”

His Alpha’s presence was stony and sharply silent. Cold. Snoke knew he was gone, but not why. Snoke seemed almost amused, content to let Kylo wander, like a mother watching a child try to scramble up an impossibly high tree. He struggled to wall his thoughts off from the Dark druid. Rey scowled, but followed him over the boulders and into the forest, trying to ignore the red-tinted water that dripped from the hem of his robes every few steps.

“Is there a way to break the connection?”

Kylo was silent for a moment. “My Knights – no. Breaking a pack bond has to be mutual. I can dampen it, though. Snoke,” he trailed off. “Snoke’s always been there.”

Rey blinked at the waves of black hair slicked to his scalp. “There?”

“In my head.”

“Always?”

“Yes.”

“Even when you were a child?”

His shoulders tightened. “That’s what always means,” he snapped at her.

She came up next to him, flinging a scowl his way, but he didn’t apologize. She tried to imagine her mind stuffed with voices her whole life. Specks and bits of memories had filtered to her through the bond over the course of the night. All those involving Snoke were soaked in a bizarre mix of terror and adoration. He craved Snoke’s approval and bristled against his authority, aching to please him in every way, but was also filled with a stubborn bend to defy him. The sentiment smacked of how he felt about Han.

He spared her a sidelong glance, expecting to see disgust. But her eyes were soft as she watched the terrain pass under her feet, and far too understanding. He thought maybe that was worse.

Rey let Kylo lead them in silence for a while. He seemed to know where he was going. She waited for him to explain, but he didn’t. She stared hard at him but he remained silence.

“What are we doing?” She burst out.

“There’s a town not far. We need supplies.”

She stared harder, eyes boring into him. “It’s like you don’t even live on this planet! We can’t go into a town this close to the First Order base. What if it’s under their control?”

“It _is_ under First Order control, we can – “

She cut him off. “We can’t just stroll into a town under First Order control! What if we get caught?”

Kylo’s jaw twitched. “Anyone who survived will be headed to the nearest base.”

“How many bases are there?”

“We had three. Now there’s just two in the north, but they’re both bigger than this one. Most of the Troopers are there.”

Kylo saw Rey pale and he sighed. “The rise of the First Order is inevitable. The territory it controls in the north is nearly half the size of the entire Republic. Now the capital is gone. The Republic is as good as dead.”

“Why?”

“Why what?”

“Why any of this? Why try to destroy the Republic? Why can’t you just let it be?”

He wheeled on her, stepping close to her face with gritted teeth. “The northern territories were lawless, miserable places until the First Order took control. The towns were disgusting and chaotic, where only the most ruthless and brutal survived. The strongest men with the biggest weapons took what they wanted – horses, supplies, land.” He gritted his teeth. “Women. There was no safety if someone stronger existed and wanted something from you.”  

Rey huffed and looked away, but her eyes flashed. Finn’s voice as he told her about First Order tactics echoing in her head. “And you matched the brutality and took it even further. You’ve committed genocide.”

Kylo’s mouth twisted and he abruptly turned and kept walking. “We did what was necessary to gain control.”

Rey stomped after him, yelling at his back. “The ends don’t justify the means, Kylo!”

He didn’t deny her and she bound several steps, catching up with him again.

“Why did you leave the Resistance?”

He sneered. “You must know how much they hate shapeshifters.”

 “But your family.” She shook her head in disbelief. “That had to afford some kind of protection.” Her voice grew timid. “What happened?”

Fury shot through their bond, so strong it was physical. Her stomach ached like she’d been kicked and she lurched back. He whirled on her, nearly nose to nose.

“Never. Ask. Me. That. Again.” His voice matched the violence in the bond but his features tightened in pain. His eyes dropped to Desi’s pendant hanging against her shirt.

“But then why join the First Order?”

His jaw clenched. “Snoke.”

Rey exhaled, too frustrated to keep probing for information. His side of the bond was just a blank wall.

She followed him in silence, letting the tension cool before she steeled herself against his next outburst. “I think we should travel to the Resistance base and make contact.”

His fists balled and Rey rushed to explain. “I want to find Finn. He’ll be with them. He understands. He won’t betray us.”

Kylo gave a dry snort. “Is that what FN-2187 calls himself now?”

“It’s his name,” she blazed. “The one you took from him when the First Order destroyed his home and imprisoned him and his father, who he’s positive is dead by now. And _your_ shapeshifters killed his mother and his sister.”

Kylo frowned. “His sister’s not dead,” he replied dismissively.

Rey’s chest hitched. “How do you know that?”

“I was there.”

Her voice was cutting. “Did you kill his mother?”

Thoughts assailed him.

_“Kylo Ren,” the black-clad figure greeted him with a frown._

_Kylo bowed in subservience, his neck exposed to the powerful and ancient shapeshifter he called his Alpha._

_“You hold back from the hunt, yet again.” The Alpha’s voice grated through him, feeling like sandpaper on his skin._

_This is not the way, Kylo’s voice rich voice bloomed in the Alpha’s mind, who hissed at the wolf with fury._

_“It is my way, and you will answer to my call, and answer to my command.” The Alpha’s voice vibrated with authority, and Kylo whined as pain sliced through his body._

“Absolutely not,” he hissed. “I didn’t even want to be there. It was Snoke’s decision.”

Rey’s eyebrows shot up. “How much control does he have over you?”

Kylo looked away, refusing her question. He scrubbed his hands through his sopping hair, leaving it a scruffy mess. “You don’t understand.”

Rey stopped in front of him, blocking his path. “Then make me.”

“Snoke’s my Alpha. He has a certain amount of control.”

“He’s a shapeshifter?”

“No,” Kylo almost laughed. “Definitely not.”

“Then how?”

“I was an Alpha. I gave Snoke the power. It was a condition of joining the First Order.”

Rey threw up her hands. “That’s not helpful. How do you become an Alpha? How do you just give it away?”

“My Knights. When I joined the First Order, they pledged allegiance to me, creating a pack. It’s a unique kind of bond. It gives me a certain amount of control over them. Then I pledged allegiance to Snoke as _my_ Alpha.”

“So it’s _transferable_? Like a property title. That’s just… _bizarre_! She chewed her lip. “So technically, your Knights aren’t controlled by Snoke unless you maintain allegiance to him.”

Kylo blinked. “I suppose.”

“So un-pledge yourself.”

Kylo growled. “It’s not that easy.”

“How did it happen in the first place?”

Kylo deliberated, unsure how to explain to her. “It’s an ancient ritual. My Grandfather performed it with Emperor Palpatine. There were some chants and a pledge. And, I don’t know how to explain it. It was powerful.” He pursed his lips and avoided her gaze. Rey sighed, recognizing another dead end.

She straightened up, eyeing him. “Okay. First, we decide where we’re going. Tonight, we find a safe place to camp. We have to deal with that injury in your side. Then we get rid of this allegiance bond thing.”

Kylo dragged a hand across his face. He felt like a rag doll that was coming apart with stuffing falling out between loose seams stretched thin. “You don’t understand what you’re asking me to do.”

She planted hands on her hips. “You say that a lot.”

Kylo’s throat squeezed, shutting in the things he wanted to tell her. Instead, he lowered the barriers in his mind, letting a fine stream of thoughts filter across.

His thoughts were more of a tangled ball of sensations and memories strung together than anything singular and concrete. Rey re-lived his memories as her own.

_Kylo on one knee, squishy moss and stray pebbles pressing into his bone, his hand outstretched. He felt smaller, younger, more frightened._

_“I swear fealty to you, Snoke, as my Supreme Leader. I pledge my life in grateful service and promise you my complete submission to your superior will and knowledge. I will be your loyal servan to the end of my days.”_

_Snoke’s gnarled hand rested on Kylo’s head and he shuddered with the rush of power that coursed through him. Snoke took his hand._

_“I accept your fealty. From this point on, you will be known as Kylo Ren. No man or women will speak any other name or have authority over you. You belong to me. Rise, Master of the Knights of Ren.”_

Rey lurched forward, pulled along in Kylo’s mind.

_Kylo turned a mangled and distorted mask over in his hands. “Your Grandfather’s,” Snoke told him when he handed it to him. Kylo felt clear, steady. His purpose lay in front of him, solid in his hands. To wipe out the remaining Ovates druids, and – “_

Kylo shoved Rey from his mind and she reeled. His barriers went back up. They stared hard at each other until Rey sighed.

“I can’t pretend to completely understand. But it has to be done.”

Kylo swallowed loudly, looking away. Rey’s hand jumped again, and his gaze darted to it. She snapped it back, tucking it away as she folded her arms.

“We can chance a stop in the town if you’ll agree to let me find Finn. He doesn’t need to know you’re with me.”

Kylo glowered. “Those aren’t even close to being equal things!”

Rey’s chin jutted out and she flicked an eyebrow.

Kylo sighed. “Fine. But I go in alone.”

“Absolutely not,” Rey exclaimed.

Kylo growled, bounding away in such long strides that Rey had to jog to keep up. “You leave the cloak behind.”

Rey acquiesced, bunching her cloak up and shoving into the empty hollow of a tree, adding their lightsabers. The cold rain continued down in a steady drizzle and Rey was quickly soaked through. She shivered, trying to shut out the feeling of her skin numbing. Movement flashed in the corner of her vision and heavy, black fabric settled around her shoulders. Having kept most of his cloak in a cowl around his neck and tucked over his shoulders, it was almost as wet as she was, but she took it without comment, gratefully pulling the rough fabric tight around her. Even after getting doused in the rain, his scent enveloped her. She pulled in several deep breaths, trying to identify the scent. Like a winter night after a snowfall, she decided. Clean, sharp, almost smoky. Kylo’s eyes darted her way after a noticeably deep breath and Rey colored.

“Don’t you need this?”

Kylo shrugged, eyes forward. “I’m already soaked.” He looked worse off than her, his face drawn tight and skin taking on a sickly pale, but Rey didn’t want to walk into a town of strangers with her white tunic soaked through, undergarments on display. She eyed his numerous wounds, easily visible through the torn fabric of his robes.

“Maybe I should go by myself. You look terrible.”

Kylo rubbed his chin, where stubble was beginning to form. “I would agree, if I could trust you not to light up like a firefly if something stressful happens.”

“You helped me before.”

She studied his face, eyes lingering when he pulled his bottom lip between his teeth.

“Buying supplies for two people, alone, is suspicious,” he told her.

“The First Order will be looking for two people matching our descriptions. And you’re rather,” her eyes traveled up and down his frame, “conspicuous.”

“You’re not going alone,” he said curtly.  

Kylo cut through the town straight to the small general store.

“We got thrown from our horses during the earthquake and they ran away with our supplies,” Rey muttered to him. “If anyone asks,” she explained at his blank look. His head tilted a fraction, and Rey decided it was a thanks.

She held back a remark about his decided shortcomings when it came to plans, but he slanted a gaze at her that said he felt her words anyways. She bit the inside of her cheek.

They slipped into the general store, grabbing this and that as they circled the small room. While Kylo’s gaze picked through woolen blankets and dried food stuffs, hers swept the room from corner to corner. She found a back exit peeking out from behind a stack of barrels. She counted the number other people in the store, noting any weapons they carried. The other two customers were not heavily armed and neither gave her more than a fraction of a blank look. She got the impression safety wasn’t their top concern.

But the grizzled shop keeper watched them with open scrutiny, his oversized jaw working at a wad of tobacco. His examination did not escape Rey’s notice.

She paused to swipe two bristles and a bar of soap from a shelf, dropping them into Kylo’s arms as he approached the counter. His eyebrows went up.

She squinted. “I actually care about not being disgusting,” she shot at him, adding a small pot of soda paste to the pile.

He gave her a withering look but she saw one corner of his mouth lift as he set their supplies on the counter. The shopkeeper tallied their items in his thick ledger, eyes shifting from scratching pen to the pile to them in equal counts.

He gave them a total. Kylo’s hand moved from his pocket, and Rey caught the glint of gold. Her hand caught his wrist with nearly painful insistence, as the fingers of her other hand deftly undid the clasp of the pouch at her hip. She pulled copper and silver coins out and plunked them onto the counter with a friendly smile at the shop keeper.

“What excellent prices. You must stay busy.”

His eyes dropped to where her hand still pinched the bones of Kylo’s wrist. She gave him another friendly smile and slid her fingers between Kylo’s, letting their clasped hands rest between them with assuring familiarity. Kylo’s eyes hadn’t left her face since he grabbed his wrist. They relaxed into unfocused amusement. _I’ll play_ , they flashed at her.

“Yes, well, since this town joined the First Order, business had been much more orderly. Don’t gotta pay for extra protection from outlaws and bandits. Shipments come in on time. That sort of thing.”

Rey’s face froze in studied nonchalance. “This town joined? By choice?”

“That we did, miss. Not that the First Order really gives you much of a choice.” He smirked, then thought better of it and hurried to explain. “But we didn’t resist. We were glad to join.”

She pushed the thin wooden handle of one bristle in a half circle. “You weren’t worried about the Republic?”

He snorted, and bared his yellowed teeth in an unsightly grin. “What is there to be worried about?”

Rey gave a polite hum, ignoring the pride wafting off Kylo.

“Do you have any horse traders in town?” She asked. The shop keeper’s smiled proudly. “Aye, and a great one. Supplies to the First Order.”

Rey’s fingers smarted as Kylo pulled out of her grasp, scooping supplies into the two packs they’d bought and thrusting one at Rey.

“Take a right out the door, then follow the main road. You’ll walk right past it.”

Rey nodded in thanks at the shop keeper and wished him a good day.

Once outside, Rey lapsed into silence. Just as Kylo was about to ask her what was wrong, she took a sharp breath.

“How can people doubt the authority of the Republic so easily?” She fumed quietly. “It ruled for a thousand years. Palpatine’s reign is the blink of an eye in comparison. A thousand years! Before the Empire seized control in the bloodiest period in our history. How can people want that again?”

Kylo looked almost amused at her rant. “Human memories are short. The New Republic is weak and unstable. That’s all people see right now.”

“How can they not see the absolute evil of the First Order?” Rey spat at him.

Kylo’s eyes tightened and his amusement vanished. “They see our power and then they respond rationally, like this town. If everyone joined by choice, no one would die. It’s necessary.”

Rey’s eyes blazed. “Genocide is never necessary.”

Kylo’s voice rose. “So slow descent into chaos as the Republic falls apart is better? The First Order is saving everyone from that.”

Rey was shaking now. “Keep your voice down,” she hissed. “The First Order is monstrous.”

Kylo’s jaw clenched. “Then you were right. I guess that _does_ makes me a monster.”

Rey didn’t respond. They’d reached the trader’s stables. A woman with dark hair streaked with gray leaned comfortably against a wall, watching Rey and Kylo with slight mirth. “A lover’s quarrel?” she remarked, one side of her mouth pulling up. “Been a while since I had one of those.”

Kylo didn’t miss the way Rey stiffened beside him when the woman spoke. She didn’t look at him. A sheepish smile spread across her face and her shoulders relaxed. “He’s insistent we buy two horses. I told him we just can’t afford it!” Rey shook her head at him with a small laugh. “He can be so impossible.”

Kylo just stared. The way she effortlessly slipped into a role unnerved him. The woman’s smile widened. “I got just the horse for you two.” She left to fetch the horse in question. Rey watched her walk into the shadows of the stable, then whirled to face Kylo, her features stony again. “We’ll have to use gold coin,” she said in clipped tones. She held out her hand and Kylo dropped some into her palm. She flashed him a cutting glare before turning around, a smile already reaching her face for the returning horse trader. The woman led a giant, grey dappled horse that towered over all three of them. His long, dark legs ended in a white fringe.

Rey cooed delightedly, stepping up to the horse and reaching out a friendly hand. He snorted in her face, bumping his giant muzzle into her forehead. His nose was bigger than her entire head. Kylo couldn’t stop a little smile at the sight.

“He’ll do,” Rey said with a pleased smile. Rey and the woman haggled over the price. Just when Kylo was about to step in and remind Rey they needed to move along, they struck a deal. She’d argued the trader down a ridiculously low price, and convinced her to throw some tack and supplies into the deal as well. The trader blinked in near shock as Rey paid her.

Rey peered into the depths of the stable as the trader retrieved the items. “Awfully empty in there,” she remarked to the woman.

“Five people came by not an hour ago, practically bought me out. They were all very serious and in a hurry.” The trader stepped closer to Rey, her head dipping.

“Knights, they were,” she said with a nod. Her eyes shone slightly with admiration.

Fear shot through Rey. She lowered her voice to match the woman. “Knights of Ren?”

The woman nodded again, then tapped her forearm. “I saw the mark on one of them.”

Rey just nodded, struggling to keep a friendly expression. They bid the woman goodbye and left the town as quickly as they could without looking suspicious.

They retrieved their stashed weapons and Rey’s cloak in silence. She bundled it into a pack and donned a non-descript black cloak instead, pulling the stiff, waxed material around her tightly. She sat behind Kylo on the horse, the oversized saddle barely fitting them both. Even though it should be squishing her against him, she managed to hold her body apart. Every so often, Kylo felt the brush of the front of her cloak against his back.

Kylo was an ocean. With every hoof beat he tightened, pulling at her mind like the strain of a receding wave on the sand. The he crashed, his tension streaming out, dissolving. A moment of nothing. Then he sucked it back in, and began anew.

Rey studied the motion from afar. Then she realized – he was talking himself down. Every minute brought them closer to the reach of his perceived enemies. His anxiety built and built until he tumbled out of it with heavy effort. And then it built again.

She pressed three fingers to the back of his arm, just above his elbow. The touch was hummingbird light, but it lingered. Her hand dropped back to her knee.

“It’ll be okay,” she murmured, watching the movement of a slowly drying wave of hair against his neck.

“You can’t know that,” he responded, with a shake of his head that was somehow both soft and curt.

But she felt him latch onto her certainty like a drowning man to a cast rope. The ocean rhythm subsided and Rey found the quieted rise and lull of his emotions almost calming.

Although the rain had stopped a while ago, Kylo shivered through the hours until twilight fell. By the time they hunted down a shallow cave in the side of a rocky outcropping, his shivers had turned nearly violent.

After seeing to the horse, which Rey had dubbed “Dusky” for his coloring, she visually parsed through the surrounding bushes.

Kylo’s brow furrowed. “Do you see something?”

She sighed. “I was hoping for some dry wood somewhere, but I doubt we’ll find any.”

His frown remained. “We can’t light a fire anyway, it’s too risky.” He was staring hard at the area around the outside of the cave. Rey felt slight ripples in the Force, and tried to follow what he was doing, but he moved too quickly. She thought she saw his fingers twitch in glyph-drawn movements. He caught her watching and held up a hand, slowing re-drawing the signs with exaggerated motions.

“Shield and illusion,” he informed her.

“Why those?” She asked, mimicking his motions. Her curiosity seemed to have overpowered whatever low-burning anger remained from their earlier argument.

“Shield will block sounds, smells, and evidence of druidic activity. Illusion requires you to imagine what you want people to see from the other side. It’s tricky. It’s easier to set one up called ‘façade,’ but you have to set it from the outside. It will just maintain whatever visual exists at that moment. Then you have to move through it or go around it, which weakens it. It’s unstable, I don’t trust it.”

“Why not use one like at the First Order base?”

“Those were wards. They require two or more druids working together. They’re time-consuming and very taxing. They require more time to train than I can give you right now.  I’ll teach you how to make them someday.”

The off-handed way he talked about the future was somehow reassuring to her. She studied the motions of her hands as she moved through the glyphs once more, then her scrutinizing gaze swung to him and followed his shaking frame.

“I’ll be fine,” he insisted.

“Let me see the wound in your side.”

He grimaced but didn’t argue, tossing aside his gloves and pulling off his sodden cloak. Numb fingers fumbled with his wide belt. He stifled a gasp as he lifted his surcoat off, struggling to pull the large piece over his head. His jaw twitched when he reached for the top set of hooks on the back of his midcoat. Rey watched for only a few seconds more before she strode over to him, her mouth set in a stern line. She stepped behind him and released the hooks with swift movements. He stiffened with a sharp intake of breath. She eased it off, one arm at a time and he stepped out of it. She reached for his tight neck seal and he shied away.

“Are you planning to sleep in it?”

“It doesn’t need to come off.”

“It’s soaking. It has to dry.”

He sighed in resignation and didn’t protest as she undid the seal from the back, reaching around him to add it to the growing pile of damp, black fabric. She helped him with his stiff sleeve pieces as well, eyes catching on the bold, intricate designs of the black tattoos that wound around his arms and disappeared beneath his tunic. She fingered the pleated garment, which was plastered to his skin.

“Raise your arm up a little,” she instructed him. He obliged, and she didn’t miss the slight tremble to his arm as he moved. She reached for his side, then hesitated, eyes darting to his face. _You’re being ridiculous,_ she chastised herself, pushing down the warmth that hummed under her skin as she moved closer to him. Then she gently probed the area around the wound. Torn fabric was squashed into the ragged edges of a disturbingly deep gash. Over several layers of drying blood, a few fresh drops trickled out.

Rey sighed. “Your tunic is embedded in the wound. You need stitches.” She laid out his sleeping roll and gestured for him to lie down. He seemed ready to argue with her, but obliged, stretching out on his side. She pulled a needle and thread from the pouch at her waist, her fingers brushing against the wolf figurines she’d tucked in before she left home. It was only a few days ago but it felt like longer.

Using a pocketknife, she cut away Kylo’s tunic, slicing it off him neatly without tugging on the fabric stuck in the wound. Her eyes swept over the rest of his chest and back as she pulled the remaining fabric away. Layers of scars and tattoos spread over his finely honed muscles. The complex figures and twists of his tattoos made her head spin when she tried to follow them. More questions for him crowded her mind.

“Okay,” she readied him, reaching for the bloodied fabric. Kylo merely clenched his jaw. The fabric made a sticky, sinuous noise as she pulled it away. His breath started to come heavier as she painstakingly pulled the last few frayed threads from the wound. She cleaned and stitched it as quickly as possible. Her fingers barely brushed his skin as she made as little contact as possible. _She thinks you’re repulsive,_ he reminded himself. _And why wouldn’t she?_ Still, he stung. He craned his head to look at the spot and grimaced.

“Your stitching is atrocious,” he told her.

She glared. “A simple ‘thank you,’ would suffice.”

He smirked. “Should have let me do it.”

She brandished her small blade in his face. “I can take them all out, if you’d like, and you can start over. I promise it will feel as nice as those stitches look.”

Kylo almost laughed, but thought better of it. He pulled an extra blanket around his bare torso and they settled on their respective bedrolls, munching on their rations in silence.

Rey wet a bristle and scooped some paste from the jar, handing off the jar and other bristle to Kylo with a pointed look. A smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth but he used them without comment. She packed them away and started to pull off her own shirt and pants. Kylo turned to give her privacy. She spread them out on the floor of the cave to dry and settled under her cloak and blankets, trying to get comfortable on the lumpy ground. Every time she felt like she might doze off, the rustle of Kylo shivering in his blankets and the physical motion of it through the ground woke her back up. After several minutes, she made a quiet, irritated noise, and with a sigh, gathered her blankets and scooted over to Kylo’s side.

“Move over,” she muttered, pulling her blanket and cloak over top of them.

He tensed. “What – ”

“Your shivering is keeping me awake,” she complained. “You can’t heal if you catch a chill.” She drew closer to him, bumping into his bare back where he was curled up on his side. Hesitantly, she fit herself to the line of his body, draping one hand over his waist, careful to avoid his wound. Her bare legs pressed lightly to his, and he squeezed his eyes harder shut.

 _Doesn’t mean anything. She’s just being practical._ Still, Kylo’s thoughts wiggled away from him, wondering into images that warmed his face.

His skin seemed to suck the heat from hers. Slowly, he yielded, relaxing one muscle at a time into her peculiar warmth. His shivers grew weaker and father apart, until they disappeared altogether. Their breaths slowed and shallowed together as they fell asleep.

Rey woke early the next morning with a hot blush. Her dreams the night before had been risqué to say the least, and deliciously real. She found herself facing the other way, with Kylo’s frame curled snuggly around her own. A muscular arm held her, gently pressing under the swell of her breasts. Against her rear, she felt a hard pressure and her face bloomed with fresh color when she realized what it was. A hot throb rose beneath her hips. She couldn’t resist surreptitiously arching her back. She hadn’t been with a man for a long time. Her messenger life kept her lonely and frustrated most nights. Her eyes slid shut as she held herself steady against Kylo’s libidinous display and she promised herself only a few more seconds. Her hand inched towards the edge of her undergarments. Suddenly, Kylo’s arm tightened around her chest, drawing her closer. His erection strained against her and her hips arched into his reactively.

A low moan escaped him, warm breath tickling the small hairs on the back of her head. His lips brushed against the side of her neck, then the soft stroke of his tongue along the sensitive skin. The arm around her chest roved south, his fingers skimming along her abdomen, curling around the ridge of her hip. He dipped his fingers further and she bucked harder against him, breaths coming faster. Her thoughts were too snarled to think about what this meant. Distantly, a part of her clamored in alarm. She shoved it away.

His fingers dragged lower, combing through the curls of her mound. One finger slid between her folds, and he moaned again when he felt her hot, wet slit. With one wet finger, he began tracing circles around her clit with the barest of pressure. She groaned, pushing down onto his finger. He responded, gliding across her nub harder. Heat raced through her and her limbs trembled. She surged and rose, stretching for completion. He pushed her right to the cusp, slowing just slightly to savor and stretch out her cries. She squirmed against him, mouth opening to –

Kylo stretched and rolled onto his back with a long yawn. Rey’s eyes flew open. The fantasy dissolved. Her blood thundered in her ears. Sweat cooled on her temples as she struggled to muffle her rushed breaths. Kylo peered at the back of her head.

“You’re shaking,” he noted, looking at where his arm still touched her back.

“Just got cold when you moved,” she forced out.

He pursed his lips; her mind was a storm of emotions and he could feel heat rising off her, but he didn’t respond, instead swinging to his feet and gathering his clothes. They were still a little damp, and very cold. He suppressed a sigh and began dressing. After a moment, Rey rolled over to watch him. Her cheeks were stained a rosy red and her eyes shone slightly. He bit his lip and pulled a garment over his head to block out the sight.

“You’re moving better,” she remarked, eyes following his swift motions.

“Wound just needed a little push, I guess,” he admitted reluctantly. He stared at her for a moment longer, eyes lingering again on the chain to Desi’s pendant that fell beneath her shirt. His manner turned brusque and he straightened, nodding his head towards the outside. “Let’s going.”

“Yes, sir,” she half sneered, half smirked at him.

Rey cursed her energetic imagination and keen memory. Images from the morning popped into her head one after the other. To distract herself, she asked Kylo about different glyphs. He led her through the basics, signing with one hand. “Don’t actually use the Force,” he warned. “We don’t need to leave an obvious trail for other druids.”  

At mid-day they stopped for a quick lunch next to a chattering brook. The day was clear and the skies were a brilliant blue. Rey gazed wistfully at the fresh water trickling past them, wishing desperately she could wade in and scrub off the layer of dirt with the lye soap they’d bought from the general store. Kylo peered at her like he knew what she was thinking.

“We’ll have time later.”

Rey grimaced and ran a hand over her dirty hair that she’d hastily twined into a braid. “But I feel disgusting.”

He opened his mouth as if to say something and then stopped short, biting his lip. His eyes stuck on her face.

“What?”

He swallowed. “You don’t look disgusting.”

Rey flashed him a quick smile. “What a relief,” she said dryly. Both of their heads whipped simultaneously to a rustle from a nearby bush. Rey heard Kylo’s low inhale and then he relaxed. A second later, a crow hopped out of the bush, one wing folded up at an awkward angle. Rey gave a tiny gasp.

“He’s hurt!”

Kylo blinked at her, turning his gaze to the injured crow. His forehead creased. “Yes? He is.”

Rey broke off a little piece of the hard bread she was eating and crumbled it up, tossing the crumbs towards the bird. He tilted his head back and forth, eyeing Rey before nervously hopping forward and gobbling up the crumbs.

“I think crows are carnivorous,” Kylo said.

“I think starving crows don’t care,” Rey retorted lightly. She continued feeding the crow until he was eating out of the palm of her hand.

“Poor, little guy. His wing looks broken. He needs a splint.”

Kylo snorted, then realized she was serious when she started digging through her pack for some bandages. She tore a long strip in half, length-wise, then stared the crow face-on.

“Okay bud, I need to fix up your wing. Think you can handle that?”

To Kylo’s amazement, the crow hopped closer to Rey, standing still when she delicately picked him up and set him on her lap. She touched the broken wing with thoughtful motions, then looked at Kylo. “I don’t know anything about broken bones. Or tying up splints.”

“Why are you looking at me? It’s a bird.”

“You’re a trained Healer, aren’t you?”

Kylo sighed. “You can’t be serious.”

Rey scowled until he sighed again. “I can’t believe I’m doing this,” he grumbled, crawling on his knees to sit beside her. She gently handed off the bird, instructing him to remain calm.

“He can’t understand you, Rey.”

“You don’t know that. Crows are smart.”

Kylo sighed again. “I’m traveling with an actual child.”

She glared. “Just fix it.”

Kylo unfolded the wing as far as he could, trying to ascertain the damage. “It doesn’t look like a broken wing. But something is definitely out of place.” He took the strips of bandages from her and started looping them around the wing at precise angles. She watched him while he worked, his face took on the absorbed expression of concentration she’d first seen when he stitched her arm up in her house. His eyes flicked sideways at her, and she knew he was thinking about it too.

“Done,” he announced, leaning back to admire his own work. “Never treated a bird before. You should feel lucky,” he said, pointing at the crow, who squawked at him.

Rey flashed him an amused look. “And I’m the child, hmm?”

Kylo ignored her, unfolding his long legs and standing up. “We need to get going.”

He gathered up the few items sitting out and they both headed for Dusky. The crow sat on the ground, watching them.

Rey frowned. “We can’t leave him here.” She tipped her head back to look up at Kylo. He rubbed his temples. “Then bring it with, I don’t care.”

The crow sat complacently in her lap and she fed it tiny scraps of dried meat she’d stashed in her pocket.

“I know you’re feeding it our food, Rey.”

She huffed. “A few little bites isn’t going to matter.”

Kylo just shook his head, tangled waves of hair brushing his shoulders. She watched their movement; she wanted to reach out and comb her fingers through the mess.

Suddenly, Kylo tensed, his hand whipping to his belt. His lightsaber exploded to life, a few sparks flying off.

Rey grabbed his shoulder, her other hand going to her own saber. “What is it?”

Kylo spun the horse around in a half circle, eyeing the woods. Dusky’s eyes rolled and he stepped nervously under them. Their bond thrummed in her mind, fed by their surging emotions.

Rey unclipped her lightsaber, its blue blade flaring up with a quick thought. Kylo turned the horse again, then cursed.

A man stepped from the shadows of the forest, gaze steady on Kylo.

Four more figures emerged. They were surrounded. Rey gulped, already reaching for the Force.

One by one, red blades appeared in their hands. The first man’s shirt sleeves were rolled to the elbows, but Rey didn’t need to look at the tattoos that twisted around his forearm to know who they were. In unison the five Knights advanced on them. Their eyes glowed golden.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry I've been totally MIA for so long. A lot of really bad shit happened recently and I really wasn't up to writing for a long time (and too busy anyhow). I hope the extra long chapter helped make up for it!


	23. Chapter 23

The Force bunched and tightened as seven powerful druids all readied at once. Rey plopped the injured crow into the nearest saddle bag. His little head poked out from under the flap, watching but silent.

Rey’s hands tingled and Kylo’s chin wrenched towards her over his shoulder before returning forward. Then his free hand went out, curved into an invisible grip. The Knight facing Kylo gasped and threw a hand up. “No, wait!” He struggled around Kylo’s hold on his throat.

“Don’t boil me alive!”

With a jolt, Rey realized the Knight was looking at her. Kylo’s hand faltered.

A woman’s voice spoke up behind them, clear and elegant. “We’re not here to capture you!”

Kylo snorted quietly. Rey looked over her shoulder at the Knight. Sunlight illuminated the terror in her honeyed brown eyes as her gaze flicked from the Knight in Kylo’s hold to where Rey still clung to his shoulder.

“Catra’s right!” The man wheezed. Kylo shifted his hold from the man’s throat to his torso, pinning his arms at his sides.

“Explain, Rhys,” Kylo demanded of the Knight, words clipped.

Rhys took another ragged breath and nodded at the other Knights. One by one their red blades blinked out. All except Catra’s. Black leather gloves creaked against the handle of her saber as she gripped and regripped, still watching Rey’s hand on Kylo’s shoulder. Rey watched Catra out of the corner of her eye as she slowly let go of his shoulder, pretending to readjust her cloak. Catra sagged with visible relief, smoothing back a lock of her loosely bound dark red hair. Her lightsaber went out. Curiosity begged Rey to put her hand back, just to see what Catra would do.

“We saw you jump,” Rhys told them. “Hux sent us after you. We found your trail and then we split up. Hael and three others went southeast.”

Kylo gave a small shake of his head. “Why would you split up after finding our trail?”

Catra had circled them to stand by Rhys. “Because that’s where Hux thinks you went. They’re going to loop around and meet back up with us.”

Kylo’s head shook again. “I don’t understand.” Rey rolled her eyes and saw a smile flash across Catra’s lips.

Rhys eyed the other Knights. “We’re the Knights of Ren. We may have joined the First Order but we swore fealty to you.” Rhys eyes included Rey when he said the last word and Kylo’s head tilted her way. Her curiosity flared again.

“Snoke is no shapeshifter,” said another Knight with a gravel voice. He glowered under a salt and pepper beard but Rey recognized the shine in his eyes. Loyalty. Her gaze swept Kylo’s profile, still inclined her way. Rey thought his Knights seemed far more dedicated to him than he was to them.  

Kylo deliberated for a few seconds. He needn’t worry about his Knights lying to him or betraying them – they couldn’t. In their wolf form, running together, those thoughts would be open for him to read. No secrets. No secrets meant that, already, they looked at Rey with respect and allegiance. They knew who she was, and what that meant for them. And Rey had noticed; her curiosity bumped against his thoughts. His jaw clenched.

“Where are you headed?” Catra asked.

Kylo bit his lip. “Towards Lios.”

Rhys’ face darkened. “The main Resistance base is near there.”

Rey answered while Kylo was still taking a breath to speak. “We’re not going to the Resistance. I want to find my friend, Finn. He’s not Resistance.”

It was almost a lie. Kylo flinched, the barest shiver of his shoulders against hers.

“Finn was a Stormtrooper,” she continued, making steady eye contact with each Knight one by one. “He trusts me. I trust him.”

“Does he know you’re a shapeshifter?” The gravel-voiced Knight growled at her.

Her eyes briefly slid shut. “Yes.”

Catra’s hand squeezed on the hilt of her weapon. “No Stormtrooper escapes the First Order and lives.”

Kylo finally spoke. “This one did. He was the Trooper Snoke sent us to hunt down near Agé-de.”

Rey’s chest hitched and froze. Finn was right. It was his fault. It was his fault the shapeshifters were at his home. Kylo shoved at her through their bond and she realized she’d curled her hand into his bicep, bunching the roughly layered fabric under her white-knuckled grasp. Her fingers slackened, but kept a loose hold on his arm. Stomach-turning grief rose inside her as she remembered building a pyre for Finn’s mother, her arm twisting with pain as she picked up branch after branch.

Warm solace seeped into her hand, again tightened on Kylo’s arm. Her focus narrowed to her shaking fingers pressed into his solid presence and she let out a steadied breath.

Another Knight joined the conversation. “Why meet up with this Finn?”

Rey’s eyes swept the woman’s tall, lanky form and short, choppy hair. She reminded her of Warren and Rey swallowed. She didn’t really know how many of her new friends had escaped the First Order base. Part of her hoped she would see them again. Another part reminded her how dangerous that now was. “We can’t go back to the First Order and the Republic is crippled. We need to know what the Resistance is doing.” Another almost lie. _But really,_ _I need to see Finn again,_ she added to herself.

The woman frowned. “Why can’t we go back to the First Order? Snoke doesn’t need to know what really happened.”

Kylo’s head snapped to the Knight, his eyes wild. “We can’t go back to the First Order. Not anymore.” The Knight saw his gaze skitter to Rey and her face cleared. Rey internally growled in frustration. She felt like they were having a conversation she could only hear every other word of.

Rhys inclined his head towards them. “Okay, we’ll follow.”

Catra agreed with a small nod, folding her arms. “But then we come up with a real plan.”

The Knights had tied up their horses in a small clearing ahead of the direction Rey and Kylo had been traveling in.

“Why wouldn’t they stay mounted?” She murmured to herself.

Kylo answered her question in a hushed tone, but his rich voice rumbled through her. “So they can turn easily and not worry about the horses running off.”

Rey’s mouth snapped shut when he mentioned turning and Kylo almost smiled. Finally, something she didn’t want to ask a thousand questions about.

They traveled in near silence for the rest of the day, stopping only before they crossed a small stream to refill on water and stretch their legs. Their stoic demeanors blanketed them like a thick fog, punctuated only by the crow’s squawks, which sounded painfully out of place. Rey perched the bird on her thigh and hushed him. He watched her with one glassy black eye but remained quiet until nightfall.

The Knights were far more equipped than Rey and Kylo were. When they reached a small clearing, they fell into tasks without a word to each other. Catra ignited a fire with barely a flick of her hands. Áinee, the Warren look-alike, and the fifth Knight, Calla, a statuesque woman with silky black hair and luscious curves, looked after the horses. Rhys and the gravel-voiced Knight, who Rey learned was called Dax, pitched tents. Dax crossed the clearing to Rey and she couldn’t help but shuffle back from his hulking form. He pointed to one of the tents. “You and Kylo.”

Rey’s jaw fell open but Dax had already turned away. Rhys took up first watch, leaning against a tree. His hood was down, exposing one side of his red hair to the fire. Crouched against a tree munching on hardtack and dried meat, Rey studied him before looking at Catra. In addition to their hair, they shared the same long nose and balanced lips. She wondered if they were related.

“Brother and sister,” came Kylo’s voice behind her. She jumped, throwing a scowl at him over her shoulder. He hovered behind her, a blanket bunched under his arm. “Creepy,” she muttered to herself, but Kylo smirked. Rey’s hand flashed to her head and she violently scratched at her scalp. “If I don’t get a bath soon I am going to lose my mind and rip my own hair out.”

Kylo cocked an eyebrow at her, arms crossed. “Seems dramatic.” He tilted his head towards the forest. “Come on.” He offered her a hand but she just looked at him suspiciously. He huffed and jabbed his hand towards her again. “Would you just get up?”

She ignored the offered hand and sprang to her feet, lips pursed. His jaw jutted out and he whirled, robes swishing around his legs as he stomped into the forest. Just as she was about to ask him where they were going, a small pond came into view, the moonlight casting silver across the still water. He pointed at the pond with a flourish. “For you.”

Rey snickered at his proud smile. “It’s going to be freezing.” The smile vanished and his nostrils flared. “I fixed that, for you information.” He shoved the blanket at her and stomped back into the woods.

“Wait, Kylo!” She called out after him. She saw his silhouette turn. “Don’t go too far,” she finished bashfully. She felt his chuckle more than she heard it. Her soap tumbled out of the blanket and she faintly smiled. She hesitantly sent a pulse through their bond. A feeling echoed back. Formless…but almost tender. Suddenly chilled, she turned back to the pond and roughly yanked off her clothing. She saw again the lifeless forms hanging from the obelisks in the First Order base, bloodied chains cutting into their cold skin. _He was a part of that,_ she reminded herself. _An unwilling_ _part,_ came her next thought. She sighed, dipping her toes into the pond. The water was delightfully warm and she grinned in anticipation.

Kylo heard an enormous splash from the pond and his lips twitched. Pure satisfaction radiated from her and he congratulated himself on the brilliant plan to heat the water, even if it had exhausted him. All his wounds throbbed quietly, their healing stunted by all the energy he’d just spent. Snoke would have called it an irresponsible waste.

He felt Catra approaching before he heard her. She moved almost silently, like a cat, stepping up beside him without so much as the snap of a twig. She nodded her chin in the direction of the pond.

“Has she turned?”

“No.”

“Does she know?”

Kylo gritted his teeth. “No.” Catra’s features were hard angles in the moonlight, her downturned mouth the sharpest of them all.

“I suggest you tell her before she turns. And I suggest she turns while we are still far away from any towns or farms.”

He wanted to snap at the older woman and tell her it was none of her concern but he held back his words. It _was_ her concern. And she was right. Catra’s granite face revealed nothing but she radiated disapproval. She disappeared into the woods as quickly as she appeared.

Rey started shivering the second she got out of the water. Autumn had arrived in full force and the temperature was plummeting. She dried with the blanket and dressed as quickly as possible. Even despite the chill, she savored the burn of the lye soap on her scrubbed skin and her clean hair. She walked in Kylo’s direction without even looking for him, finding him leaning against a large tree missing most of its leaves. His fists were clenched in his ever-present gloves and he briefly looked her over before returning to whatever sour thoughts he was buried in. She frowned but he didn’t see it.

She pushed the blanket and now-sticky soap into his hands. He stared blankly at them. “Your turn,” she announced.

He sputtered. “This is not the time! We need to get back to the camp.”

She leaned forward and sniffed and then wrinkled her nose at him. “I have to share a tent with you.”

He grimaced at her and growled, a menacing sound deep in his throat. She narrowed her eyes, unfazed. “You’re just dragging it out.”

He crumpled the damp blanket in his hand and shot her a vile look. She just smiled, smug. “I’ll wait,” she said, taking his spot against the tree.

“I don’t need your protection,” he grated.

“Fine,” she snapped, spinning on her heel and marching into the woods. She immediately regretted it, the already familiar feeling of every step further away from him pulling at her chest like little strings on her ribcage. She wondered if he felt it, too.

She found their bedrolls already laid out in their tent, placed neatly side by side. With a start, she realized the tent was empty. She’d set the crow inside right after Dax pointed the tent out to her. He was nowhere to be found. She dashed out of the tent, head whipping around as she looked through the campsite.

“Bird! Bird!!” She called a few times. She noticed the Knights around the fire gawking at her and she snapped her mouth shut, retreating to the tent with flaming cheeks. The crow had abandoned her. She glared at the blankets placed so close together and spitefully dragged her bedroll to the farthest edge of the tent, then shoved Kylo’s the other direction. She kicked off her shoes in front of the tent flap and crawled under the blanket, face to the tent wall. “Stupid bird,” she mumbled.

Half asleep, she heard Kylo attempt to creep quietly into the tent. He stumbled over her shoes and cursed, collapsing in a pile on his bedroll. She sniggered silently to herself under her blankets. Fabric rustled as he settled down. He was shivering again, and Rey regretted moving their blankets. But the small tent warmed quickly. Rey fell asleep to Kylo’s winter scent mixed with the sharp tang of the soap in her lungs.

Rey was woken by a whispering chorus of dark voices. She lay on her back in the dark, heart pounding. They called her name, each time more insistent. The timbre was off. Childlike, but harsh and cackling. The moonlight streamed through a small hole in the tent, the straight beams becoming distorted in the air. It swirled around her like smoke. Her head spun. Sweat broke out on her brow and the need to answer the voices itched at her mind unbearably. She yanked on her shoes and slipped out of the tent.

She followed the voices farther and farther into the forest. The trees tilted at odd angles, and she staggered like she was drunk. The voices abruptly stopped, so she did too, clinging to the papery bark of a young birch tree. A strangled scream escaped her throat.

Small faces appeared from all sides, seeming to float out of the darkness, disembodied. Dozens of them, solemn children with black eyes and snow-white skin. She clenched her eyes shut and shook her head. _Wake up wake up this is a dream wake up._

A breath of a touch brushed her arm and her eyes flew open. One of the children stood inches from her, his small, pale hand hovering above her own. They weren’t body-less, she realized, simply dressed from neck to toe in black clothing. She leaned closer to the boy, trying to make out the ruffled texture. Feathers, she realized. Smooth, black feathers. Curiosity overtook fear.

“Who are you?” She whispered to the child.

He held up his arm to her. “You helped me. You and your wolf.”

Rey froze, unblinking. Her eyes widened. She stammered through the impossible words. “You’re, the bird?”

He folded reedy arms crossly. “Crow.” The children behind him nodded their heads silently.

She surveyed their plumy black hair and feathered clothing. “You’re all…?”

They nodded again. She swallowed, remembering the stark painting of the animals in the smugglers cave. There were more than just wolf shapeshifters in the picture.

“How many,” she halted, “kinds are there?”

The boy smiled, his eyes brimming with secrets. “Many,” he answered simply.

“Why are you here? What am I doing here?”

He tilted his head, watching her with one dark eye. “We are pathfinders. I am Branwen.”

Rey’s eyebrows scrunched together. “That’s doesn’t really answer my questions.”

He faced her fully again. His black eyes were fathomless. “You ask the wrong questions.”

A girl from the group spoke to him in a fast stream of words, the language at first unfamiliar. Rey caught a few words here and there and realized the girl was speaking Gaeleg, a dead language. Dead for a thousand years.

He answered the girl in irritated tones and she made a frustrated sound.

“We do not have the time for this,” he huffed at Rey.

She grasped his tiny wrist, his bones feeling like brittle straw under her fingers. “Tell me what you want with me.”

He leaned towards her, whispering in her ear conspiratorially. “You will keep us safe.”

Then he touched a cool palm to her cheek. Her cry of pain echoed through the barren trees. The world went white.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Branwen means "beautiful raven" and I'm way too pleased with myself about that.


	24. Chapter 24

The light was above her, moving away. No, she was sinking. A part of her - dark, foreign - twisted to life. Rey struggled as she sunk into the black, grasping towards the surface of herself with heavy limbs, trying to claw past this other presence, this creature. Her limbs were sluggish, like a dream. The darkness swallowed her and the creature escaped.

* * *

 

Kylo was awake and on his feet in an instant. His head was a riot, the bond pulsing with terror. His breaths puffed white in the frigid air. Rey wasn’t in the tent. He sent a frenzied alarm call to his Knights. He snatched Rey’s cloak from where it lay crumpled near her blankets. Underneath lay her belt, pouch, and lightsaber. His blood turned to ice. He couldn’t imagine where she went without her cloak and he’d never seen her without that pouch at her hip. Fear threatened to crash down him. She was somewhere outside in the cold, unprepared and unarmed.

He grabbed his saber and rushed out the tent. Knights were already emerging from their tents, dressed and armed. Kylo’s breaths came in harsh waves and Catra appeared at his arm, gripping his shoulder. “Kylo,” she barked at him. “Focus. What’s happening to Rey?”

His eyes slid shut. His rushing breaths drowned out the sounds of the night. The bond went white-hot in his mind, and then twisted. “She’s far away. And she’s turning.”

Catra snapped at three of the Knights. “Rhys, Áinee, Dax, on your horses. Calla, you’re with Kylo and me.”

Rhys and the other two dashed away and Calla immediately started pulling off her clothes. Down to a cotton tunic and pants, she didn’t have time to shiver before she dissolved into a flurry of light and color. She emerged on the other side with fangs barred and her jaw snapping at the air.

Catra tapped Kylo’s shoulder. “Get moving.” He snapped back to attention, and they shed their outerwear in unison.

They raced through the forest, following Kylo’s lead. Calla and Catra flanked him, Calla a blur of black, brown and gray, and Catra’s brown-red fur bristling on the right. The Knights on horseback fanned out, ready to pull ahead and cut Rey’s escape off.

In the back of his head, Kylo could hear Snoke laughing at him. He growled savagely, furious with himself, and shoved it into the hole Snoke used to worm into his mind. The laughing stopped.

Kylo took the most direct route to Rey rather than follow her track for track. Their run stretched out, each passing second feeling dangerously long. _Why did she go so far?_ His thoughts echoed out, and Catra reached out with her resolute presence. As always, he shied away from her unwavering faith in him. He had never felt so strongly felt that her trust was misplaced.

The bond was growing, feeding greedily on his own panic. He took several measured breaths, trying to pull himself back into some semblance of calm and control. They burst into a clearing in the middle of a stand of milky birches. Dozens of crows perched on their empty branches, glittering black eyes never moving. Their stares were trained on the wolf pacing agitated circles below them.

Kylo skidded to a halt, paws rooted to the earth. She was smaller than most of his Knights, but he expected that; she was smaller than a lot of people. Long-legged, elegant lines, lean. Pure, snow-white fur. She was beautiful.

She whirled when she heard their arrival, snapping at them, lips pulled back to expose long canines. Then she resumed her pacing, twisting in tight circles, shaking her head and pawing at her nose.

Kylo felt sympathy emanate from his Knights. Turning for the first time was disorienting – disjointed voices in your head, thoughts and images rushing from a dozen different directions. Everyone’s thoughts and knowledge funneling into you at once. The crushing thirst for bloodshed.

Rey suddenly froze, eyes focused on something in the distance. White fur vibrated over quivering muscles. She threw her head back and howled. The mournful cry tore out of her and raced through him, igniting his blood. Kylo knew his Knights felt it too; the voice of one of their own incensing them to join, to follow. She sniffed and launched forward, veering away from Kylo and the others, racing deeper into the forest. They sprang after her. Distantly, Kylo realized fat snowflakes flew through the air, sticking in his fur and melting on his muzzle.

Calla sniffed the air and her voice was bold along their pack bond. _“Humans nearby,”_ she alerted them. _“Two, maybe three.”_

The incessant stream of thoughts and memories that merged and twined together between the Knights were all spilling into Rey. Kylo could only cringe in horror as he felt Rey unravel their secrets one confounding revelation at a time.

* * *

 

Rey the human slumbered. Images came to her distantly, like the light reflecting off water as she floated far below. She bound through the forest, leaping over fallen trees and dodging stands of brush and brambles with ease. The snowfall barely registered. Even as it thickened, covering the forest in a hushed blanket, her vision was red. Her nose was filled with the salty copper tang of blood. Her jaws snapped, saliva flying, already thinking about the humans so close to her reach. The puncture of the first bite into taut skin, the squish of fat around her teeth, the sinuous shred of muscles ripping apart, and then the satisfying crunch of crushed bones. The images ran deep, like a memory she had been born with. She lived the moment a hundred different ways.

She growled, trying to clear the Knights out of her head. They were all talking, talking, talking. Talking at her, talking about her. She saw all their perspectives at once - their memories as they thought of her. One, looking at Kylo as their Alpha. At her as their Alpha? No, both of them together. _That can’t be right_ , Rey insisted. Her thoughts joined the fray. Another shapeshifter answered her, voice smug, then dismayed. _He didn’t tell you what you are, did he? What you both are?_ Rey placed the sugar-sweet voice – Calla.

Another, watching Rey’s hand gripping Kylo’s shoulder, waiting for them to blast apart every Knight with their collective power, linked through the bond. Catra, Rey realized. She had been so intent on Rey’s hand at Kylo’s shoulder.

Another, thoughts sounding brusque and minimal. Dex, Rey decided. He pondered over how long they’d waited to find her, and how young she seemed. _Not what I expected,_ he told no one in particular.

Their chatter blended and surged, roaring in her ears. She caught the scent of human again, the smell that sent her chasing in the first place, and the hollering of six other minds was muffled. Flush with the fresh scent, she surged forward, her legs flashing into a white blur. Somewhere behind her, she could feel Kylo and the others running after her. Her chest ached and she whined. She wanted to go back to Kylo. She was supposed to be near him. She was supposed to...

She saw the tent appear in the woods, no longer obscured by the thick snowfall. The curl of smoke rising from a fire they hadn’t properly extinguished, a wisp of evidence they probably couldn’t even see. All her senses locked onto the tent. She heard two heartbeats, slow and steady in sleep. She strained towards them so intently, she didn’t hear the dampened thud of paws in snow behind her.

A growl, and then sharp lancing pain on the back of her neck. She crashed, nose-first, into the fresh snow. A heavy weight bore down on her, the ring of pain at her neck growing. Teeth clamping on her. They broke skin and she felt warm blood seep into her fur. It was Kylo. The ache of absence was gone, replaced by the physical pain. She growled, then whined, crouching with her belly to the earth. The teeth eased. She rolled, swiping her curved claws at his chest. Shock pulsed through her when she saw him. Even knowing he wasn't human anymore, she stunned. A massive black wolf stood before her. The wolf from the village, the wolf in her dreams. Her claws had sank through fur and into skin, leaving five clean cuts behind. She couldn’t see the blood spill over the black fur.

He snapped at her, breaking her out of her thoughts. She danced back and crouched, waiting to spring into attack. Two other wolves joined him. Kylo’s warm golden eyes never left her own. Blood dripped onto the snow and she remembered what she was hunting for. She whirled and started towards the tent, desperate to reach it before he had her neck in his jaws again.

Kylo knew they wouldn’t get to her in time. Rey was small, strong, with long legs, making her faster than he expected. Any other day and he would have caught her by now. But he was exhausted, from the stunt with the pond, and all his wounds that hadn’t healed yet. The snowfall became aggressive, cutting their visibility short. They were hunting a white wolf in a snowstorm.

Kylo’s chest burned where Rey left him several neat rows of deep slices. _She can just stitch me back up after this again,_ he thought with grim amusement. All amusement disappeared when the tent came into view through the snow-draped trees. Rey stood at the entrance to the tent, nose low to the ground, tail flagged.

_“Call to her,”_ Catra urged. Her relative calm at this moment only made him angrier. But he listened.

“ _REY!”_

She disappeared inside.

Rey felt Kylo’s call course through her, but she shrugged it off with little effort. Once in the tent, her thoughts ceased. There was only the thick scent of human, of _alive_ , only the need to consume it. Screams, someone was screaming. Two people were screaming. The sound pierced her keen ears and she whined. She lunged for the big one first. _Stop. Screaming!_

Teeth at the throat. Burbling like a fountain. Silence. Hot blood, through her fur, in her mouth. She was delirious with it. Someone was weeping, whimpering. The sound drew her eyes, and she looked at the huddled form of the smaller one, tears on its face. _Don’t cry, little one,_ she wanted to say, but it only came out as a howling bark. _It will be over soon._ Her jaws descended.

Through the snap of bone in her mouth and the rush of blood drowning her paws, Rey registered green. She looked closer. Green eyes. Green eyes and sandy blond hair. Dead green eyes.

A memory shoved past everything, breaking through the haze of red and hunger like the first beam of light over the horizon at dawn.

A broken body, hair soaked with blood. He was wrapped in stained sheets in an attempt to hide his shredded chest, but Rey could see it all. It left dark crimson trails across their kitchen floor. She reached up to his forehead, small hands framing green eyes. Dead green eyes. Her mother saw her and wailed, pulling her away. Her father slipped his hands over Desi’s face and his eyes were closed forever.

She shuddered, pain ripping her apart from the inside. White and color consumed her and then there was nothing. She blinked in the sudden darkness. She felt like she had just woken from a bizarre dream in an unfamiliar place. Her senses came back one at a time. She brought a hand to her face, and it came away wet and sticky. _Am I injured?_ She wondered to herself. She looked down at her arms, examining them, then her chest. Skin met her. Skin and blood and nothing else. She flexed her limbs and her neck protested. She gently probed the area, discovering deep punctures all along the nape of her neck. Blood trickled from them, but not this much.

Then came the smell of fresh carnage, sharp and thick. The smell of dead things. She choked on it, gagging. Her eyes adjusted and she saw a lantern hanging from the center tent support. The tiniest of flames glowed on an oiled wick, barely enough to say it burned. With slippery fingers, she twisted the knob, letting the flame burn brighter. It cast her in a fuzzy orange light and she looked down.

A man lay to the side, neck mangled, throat ripped out, deep claw marks digging into his chest. Her heart pounded faster and she looked down at the form in front of her.

A child. Chest gaping, ribs split and jutting into the air. Lifeless green eyes stared at her.

Everything came rushing back. The child touching her cheek, feeling herself disappear into a creature she didn’t recognize. Everything foreign, loud. It was too much. Then she smelled the humans and the world became only her and them.

She remembered running from Kylo. She looked down at the mangled body beneath her. And then she remembered everything.

* * *

 

Kylo knew it was too late. Rey’s thoughts were no longer distinguishable, they were just a jumble of blind violence. He heard the screams and his heart split into a thousand broken shards. He counted his strides to the tent. Too many. The screams had stopped. He saw Rey emerge, human. Her silhouette was all long, bare lines through the night and snow. She stared in his direction, and then she fled.

He stopped briefly at the tent, only long enough to gaze inside. A man and a child lay in rumpled, soaked blankets. The stench of slaughter overwhelmed him. Their hearts lay silent. Even the tent walls dripped with carnage. He plunged back into the night, following the scent of blood, Rey, and the prints of bare feet in freshly fallen snow.

He found her huddled against a tree, arms wrapped around legs drawn up to her chest. Viscous lumps of gore clung to her tangled hair, which dripped with blood. She was covered it. One step on his four legs became another step on two.

He pulled his shirt over his head, holding it out like a shield, and softly stepped towards her.

“Rey?”

She didn’t look up. She was muttering something under her breath. He drew closer, crouching down in front of her with slow, gradual movements.

“Green eyes, green eyes, green eyes,” she whispered over and over.

He kneeled and draped the black garment around her like a blanket, pulling it tight over her knees. Light glinted off silver, and he noticed Desi’s pendant still hung at her neck. He blinked at it, confounded. She shouldn’t have been able to bring anything back with her in the transformation.

She stopped whispering and her hand shot out, clamping down on his wrist. He froze. She looked up at him, tears shining in the darkness. They stared at each other and then her face broke and she sobbed. He reached out, gathering her in his arms and pulling her against his chest. She curled into him, limbs convulsing as gasping cries wracked her whole body. She clung to him, printing his skin with sticky, red marks. He tucked her head under his chin and let her cry.

His Knights found them quickly. They approached together, human, and all silent. Catra sighed and laid a heavy hand on Kylo’s shoulder. Rhys slipped off his horse and handed Kylo a coarse blanket for Rey. Kylo shifted, pulling the blanket under his arms and tucking it around Rey, who still lay huddled against his chest, sobs subsiding to quiet tears. Catra settled a heavy, fur lined cloak around Kylo’s shoulders, leaning forward to fasten it for him. “We’ll bury them,” she murmured to Kylo. Rhys offered him his horse but Kylo shook his head. He didn’t think he could hold up Rey and ride a horse at the same time. And he sure as hell wasn’t going to let her go. He started in the direction of their camp, stepping carefully through the thick snow. All above him, crows fluttered from branch to branch as they moved through the forest. His stomach clenched. Crows were considered a harbinger of death. First the crow with the damaged wing, and now dozens followed them. He looked down to see Rey peering up at the birds.

“The crow children started this,” she whispered, her voice weak. “But it’s my fault.”

His forehead creased but he didn’t press her. Her eyes shifted to his. “Please don’t leave me,” she mumbled softly.

“Never,” he promised. She sighed, her eyes sliding shut. “It’s not your fault,” he told her, lips whispering against her temple. He carried her all the way back to camp.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I realize that I should at least TRY to space my chapters out better, but what the hell. I wrote it, I want to post it, so here you go!


	25. Chapter 25

Rey woke and her hands flew to her neck. It was wrapped snuggly in thick bandages and she tamped down panic, fingers scrabbling at the edges of the fabric. The nondescript wall of a tent met her and she craned her head to look around, disoriented. Kylo slept behind her, one arm clasped around her waist, fitting her tightly against him, wearing only pants. She realized she wasn’t wearing _anything_ except an oversized shirt that barely reached mid-thigh. She pulled the fabric to her face to inspect it and realized it smelled like Kylo. _Why am I wearing his shirt?_

She lifted her head up, looking around the tent. In one corner lay a heap of soggy rags, stained a rusty dark. The night before rushed back in garish detail. Branwen, the chase through the woods, finding the father and his son. Her nose clogged with the smell of blood and her vision blurred. Kylo stirred, lifting his head to look at her face.

“Rey?”

She was gasping now, tears coming hot and fast. He gently tugged her closer and she twisted around in his arms, burying her face in his neck. For the second time, he held her while she cried, waiting for her tears to turn to sniffles. She wouldn’t look at him. He touched a gentle finger to her chin, raising her face up to meet his eyes.

The comforting words he had ready died on his lips. His gut clenched. It wasn’t worth it. Nothing was worth dragging Rey into this nightmare. Fate, destiny, and the Force be damned. He should have let her die in the village. 

They lay silently together, lost in each other’s faces. Kylo caught a lone tear sliding from the corner of her eye. He began to pull his hand back but Rey leaned into his palm. He traced her cheekbone with his thumb and Rey’s breaths calmed with each soft brush.

“Kylo,” Rey said, the word a soft plea. “Tell me what’s happening.”

Kylo’s thumb froze. She stared at him resolutely, the morning light casting her hazel eyes in shades of brown. “I don’t know where to start,” he said.

“Start at the beginning.”

Kylo’s gaze hungrily roved her face. Rey’s eyebrows rose as she watched him. His lips moved in a hint of a sad smile. “I just want to remember this moment, before you hate me completely.”

 _I don’t hate you at all,_ she wanted to say. “I’m in no position to hate anyone right now,” she said instead. His lips twisted into a small frown.

“I’ve been looking for you for a long time,” he began slowly. He didn’t miss the merest of movements as Rey tried not to recoil. “Snoke told me about you. We’re linked.”

Rey was already shaking her head. “I don’t understand.”

“Through the Force. A bond exists between us.”

Her eyes slid away, thoughtful. “Since you questioned me at the First Order base. I can feel it.”

Kylo shook his head. “Before that. Since before we were born.”

Rey scoffed. “You can’t be serious.”

“There were others before us. The druids Bastila and Revan long, long ago. My grandfather.”

Rey was no longer disbelieving. “And your grandmother.”

“No. His druid master, Obi-Wan Kenobi.”

Rey squinted. “I thought Kenobi was a Light druid.”

Kylo looked away. “So was Anakin, at first. He broke their bond.” He rested two fingertips on her arm, where the wolf had bit her in the village. “The bite woke your shapeshifter side.”

Rey paled. “What do you mean, ‘woke?’ The bite turned me.”

Kylo’s eyes grew wary. “Rey, you’re a born shapeshifter.”

She scrambled out of his arms in an instant, keeling back onto her heels. “That’s impossible. I’m a Vivant. There has never been a born shifter in our family line. If there was, they didn’t live to birth children.”

Kylo sat up, resting his arms on his bent knees. “The wolf that bit you doesn’t have the strength to turn humans. A bite from an ordinary shapeshifter will only speed up the process. It’s called an Awakening.” His jaw clenched as he glanced away, unwilling to say the final conclusion out loud.

Rey’s voice was hoarse and broken. “Then my parents aren’t really my parents. Everything I was raised to believe is a lie.”

Kylo’s eyes flashed. “Why do you think they left? How could they stay with you after what happened to your brother?”

Rey sprang to her feet, her voice vicious. “You bastard,” she spat at him. “Just because your parents were terrified of you doesn’t mean mine were too.” Kylo’s eyes went wide and she instantly regretted her words. They stared at each other, chests heaving. Her hands fumbled with the tent opening and she darted out. Kylo grabbed for her but she easily dodged his reach, sprinting away from the tent through the trees. She heard him growl in frustration behind her.

Brittle, snow-coated grass crunched underfoot and her feet were numb after barely a dozen steps. She felt Kylo following her but she forged on anyway, ignoring the bursts of pain when rocks and sharp branches sliced her soles. She glanced down at her arms as she bounded through the woods. Rusty streaks ran down her skin, left behind from the night before. She remembered the rags in the tent and realized Kylo must have tried to clean it off. She rubbed at the blood, but it was useless.

 _I literally have blood on my hands,_ she thought with bitter humor. She didn’t realize she was running for the pond until she reached the water’s edge. Without deliberation, she plunged in, gasping when the icy water hit her. With a deep breath, she sunk under, scrubbing her hands through her filthy hair, across her arms, grating at her stomach through Kylo’s shirt.

Kylo’s first thought when he saw Rey leap into the pond was that she was trying to drown herself. Then she broke the surface, coughing and sputtering, dragging her hands through her hair and over her neck, and he realized she was trying to wash off the blood. He wanted to tell her it was useless.

He crouched at the edge of the pond, patiently waiting. After several minutes her frantic scrubbing stopped and she stood, chest-deep in the water, shaking uncontrollably, her lips turned a sickly blue. She stared at her rippling reflection in the water as if it held the answers to all her questions. Finally she looked over at Kylo. “Are you done?” He asked tersely. Her chin dropped back down to her chest and he saw drops splash from her face that weren’t from the pond water. With a weary sigh, he slogged into the water, wincing from its frigid sting. He reached for her hands, lacing his fingers through hers.

Rey picked their conversation back up as if no time had passed. “So you were looking for me, because of this bond we have. Why?”

“It’s powerful. Very powerful. More than just the sum of our individual abilities. Snoke wanted us.”

“To use us,” she murmured, thinking back to Han’s words to Kylo on the wall.

Kylo’s tone was sharp. “To help him and the First Order.”

Rey’s eyes narrowed at him and Kylo’s lips twisted. “When I found out you were a Vivant, I knew you’d never join willingly. Snoke has…methods, to force people to see things his way.” Kylo’s face darkened as he spoke and Rey’s shivers had nothing to do with the freezing water streaming off her skin.

Her head swam and she wavered. Kylo caught her as her knees buckled, sweeping in her into his arms. “Turning for the first time leaves you very weak,” he explained, unprompted. He sloshed out of the pond, water gushing out of his boots as he squelched back to camp. Exhausted, her head lolled against his shoulder. With her eyes shut, her face bloodless, and her lips blue, she looked like a corpse. He attempted to cover his alarm with an irritated frown. “No more jumping into icy ponds. I’m getting really tired of carrying you everywhere.”

The bond disagreed with Kylo’s words. Rey’s lips curved up and she half-whispered, wonderingly, “No, you’re not.”

They got a late start, thanks to Rey’s watery stunt. Catra loaned her an extra pair of trousers and boots, and Calla donated a blouse. Catra’s pants were a little baggy, but Calla’s blouse was indecent. The blouse slipped off one shoulder for the third time and Rey caught Kylo’s stare, lingering along her collarbone. They both blushed. Kylo brought Rey her things from the tent as Dax packed it up. Rey strapped her belt with her pouch and lightsaber on, but refused her cloak, shoving it back at Kylo.

“I can’t wear that anymore,” she choked out. Kylo grimaced but didn’t argue, instead offering her the fur-lined cloak he wore the night before.

“You need that more than I do,” she insisted, eyeing his already shivering frame. She threw him a sly smile. “I think you’re part lizard.” She took his frayed black cloak and wrapped it around herself, burying her face in the fabric and inhaling when he wasn’t looking.

Rey rode in front of Kylo, at his insistence in case she fainted and fell off.

“I’m not some delicate aristo,” she grumbled, but climbed in front anyway, trying not to enjoy how comfortable his broad chest and dense muscles felt against her tired back.

“We should reach the Resistance base by nightfall tomorrow,” Rhys informed them after a few minutes of riding. He kicked his horse into a trot, pulling to the front of the group. The Knights gave them all space, allowing them to lag behind the pack a bit. Their silence was torture. Every second brought her a new detail from memories of the previous night. The color of the boy’s tunic. The hoarseness of the father’s scream. She clawed at other thoughts, trying to find relief.

Kylo could feel Rey’s questions building in her until it was distracting.

“Just ask, please,” he sighed.

“How do you control it?”

Kylo knew exactly what she meant. “Cling to what makes you human. Fight the animal as hard as possible. It’s the only thing you can do. Overtime, you’ll learn to control it. Being linked with the pack makes it easier, we can talk to each other, and fight it together. Lone shapeshifters don’t last very long, they go crazy.”

“What happened the first time you turned?”

He stiffened. “Worse than you,” he answered, each word hard and sharp. “And I didn’t have anyone to find me and carry me home.”

“What is the bond?”

She could hear the perplexity in his voice. “It’s a connection,” he said.

“No, what is it, really? Where does it come from? How does it work?”

Kylo shrugged against her. “Snoke was sparse with the details. It’s made of the Force. Our souls linked together through it.”

Rey smirked. “Sounds like a bunch of romantic nonsense.”

Kylo made an annoyed sound. “That doesn’t make it untrue.”

She smiled now, her voice teasing. “Were you a closet poet when you were younger? Writing about how lonely and misunderstood you were?”

Kylo grit his teeth. “Even if I had, it wouldn’t have been manufactured.”

Rey’s voice grew soft. “I _know_.” Her memories brushed against his, nearly matching memories of lonely childhoods, missing parents, silence and empty houses. They blurred together.

Rey shivered and pulled away from the bond. “How did Snoke know about it?”

Kylo shrugged again. “How does Snoke know about anything? He’s ancient and more powerful than you can imagine.”

“Is that how he convinced you to join the First Order?”

Kylo shifted in the saddle. “I didn’t have anywhere else to go. The prospect of finding you, while it sounds like ‘romantic nonsense,’ was nearly irresistible at the time. I believed Snoke had mostly good intentions. That he was just as interested in my happiness as he was in growing his power.”

Rey snorted. “Naïve.”

Kylo’s voice was quiet. “Perhaps.”

Kylo saw rosy tones creep up her cheeks and he unconsciously leaned forward, waiting for her question.

“It feels bad,” Rey began haltingly. “Being far away from you.”

Kylo chuckled darkly. “A wonderful side effect of the bond.”

“I didn’t feel it before.”

He bumped a shoulder against hers. “The Awakening. It ignited your side of the bond. But when you got inside my head when I was questioning you…” He shook his head ruefully. “I was not expecting that.”

“So how many years did you feel this?”

“Far too many,” he answered grimly. “I was ten when I started training with my Uncle as a druid, and it only got worse after I turned.” He leaned farther forward, his lips nearly brushing her cheekbone. “That’s how I found you.”

Rey focused on new questions, anything to distract herself from the bloody memories that hovered at the edges of her mind. “Being close feels – better. But not complete,” Rey hesitantly stated.

“I’m uncertain why that is,” Kylo mused out loud.

“Maybe we haven’t gotten close enough,” Rey murmured, barely loud enough for him to hear. Kylo’s arms went rigid around her and leather creaked as he twisted the reins around his fingers. Rey smiled to herself and thought back to the day she’d told him he had pretty eyes, perched on the edge of her own kitchen table, with his fingers trailing down her arm.

After a moment, Kylo cleared his throat. “You surprise me every day,” he whispered, his lips hovering at the skin of her neck. Rey imagined arching her neck just a little further, closing the distance between them. Her desire eclipsed everything else in her head.

A tiny sigh escaped Rey and Kylo wondered what she was thinking about. The bond was relatively quiet and stable, their thoughts and feelings co-existing, side by side, brushing against each other every so often. So far, strong emotions were the only thing that heightened their awareness, causing their minds to run together like watercolor paintings.

They stopped shortly after mid-day to stretch and water their horses. Rey wandered off to relieve herself. Just as she was about to return to the group, she saw a dark flutter from the corner of her eye. She turned to see a crow sitting on a branch at shoulder level, regarding her with one eye. A full murder of crows settled on branches further away, keeping their distance. Watching. Rey clenched her jaw and stared back at Branwen with a razor glare.

“It was necessary,” came his voice, far too somber for the childlike timbre.

 _Must not be Branwen then,_ Rey mused. Rey’s head whipped around, searching for him. The crow hopped in place, his head twisting this way and that.

“I am right here,” he said impatiently. Rey fixed her gaze on the crow, trepidation creeping into her middle.

 _“Are you in my head?”_ Rey thought.

“Yes.”

She growled and spun away, crunching back through the half-melted snow towards the group. There was a whir of air in fluttering wings, and then a digging pressure on her shoulder. She turned her head far enough to see Branwen perched on her shoulder.

“Is there anyone who can’t invade my thoughts?” Rey muttered. Branwen clucked in amusement.

“The Knights are in your head because they’re your pack. You can tune them out at any time, with training. Kylo is in your head because of the Force. You cannot shut him out. Not unless one of you turns entirely to the Dark side.”

Branwen in her head was not like Kylo, or the other Knights. There was no rush of emotions, images, or textures, only cold silence, a void, and then his words came to her crisply, each syllable stark and unadorned.

“Or if one of us dies,” Rey added. Branwen said nothing. She sighed at his silence. “What was necessary?” She questioned, returning to his first words.

“Forcing you to turn. The future forms too swiftly. You were taking too long.”

“I murdered two people. Slaughtered them,” Rey responded, grim and despondent.

“The deaths of the human man and human child were unfortunate but unavoidable.” Branwen stated, every word neutral and emotionless.

Rey sharply inhaled. “You knew?” she railed at him.

“Very few werewolves have turned without bloodshed.”

Rey jumped slightly at the word. “That’s what Kylo called me once. Loup garou. Werewolf.”

“It is the most accurate word for what you are.”

“Why haven’t you spoken to Kylo?” Rey inquired.

“His mind,” Branwen hesitated for the first time. “It is not safe.”

“Because of Snoke?”

“Yes.” Branwen’s voice turned dark.

Rey could see the Knights through the trees, mounted and waiting for her. She colored and picked her pace up.

“Whatever you came to tell me, tell me quick,” Rey whispered.

“Soon many other of our kind will come to you and your wolf.” He stretched his wings and launched himself into the air with a strong push against her shoulder.

“Branwen!” She called after him. “What am I supposed to do?”

“I have already told you.” His voice thinned, growing distant. He shot above the tree line and peeled away. The other crows followed, and soon they were just dark smudges in the grey sky.

“Keep them safe,” Rey breathed to herself, the words flowing out easily.

Kylo saw the crow take flight from Rey’s shoulder. He gazed steadily at her until she reached their horse’s side, wordlessly offering her a hand up. She avoided looking at him.

The Knights kicked their horses forward in near synchrony and Rey realized Rhys and Calla were missing. Kylo caught her looking around and answered her unspoken question.

“I sent Rhys and Calla to scout.”

“You read my mind,” Rey chuckled, only half-joking.  

Kylo paused before continuing. “We’re not far from Lios, which means not far from the Resistance base. I want to camp at least an hour away from them, close enough to the city limits to look like we’re camped near Lios, and not near them.”

Rey nodded slowly. Excitement rushed through her at the prospect of finding Finn, chased by anxiety. She wasn’t positive any of them were safe. They could have all been hunted down and caught by the First Order in the time since they had left the base.

She cleared her throat. “How should we make contact with Finn?”

“I’m not sure,” Kylo reluctantly admitted.

Rey nibbled her lip. “How extensive is their base?”

“The First Order never actually, uh, gotten someone inside it before. Not anyone who made it out, anyway.”

“No, I mean, what do you remember about it?”

Kylo was quiet so long that Rey regretted asking.

“It’s rather ingenious, actually. The base is located in a very old, very dense forest. Most of the base isn’t visible. Everything is built to blend into the earth. The only truly visible buildings are in the center, but the base itself starts long before you reach the middle. There’s a gathering center. Mess hall. Larger dormitories for infantry, cavalry, and archers. Bath houses.”

Rey perked up. “Bath houses?”

“Yes,” Kylo answered slowly. “Promise me you won’t try to sneak in just to take a bath.”

Rey didn’t answer, her mind busy with various half-formed plans. Kylo leaned forward to see her face, genuine concern showing. “Rey, you know I was joking. You wouldn’t do that, right? Right?”

“Shhh,” she said, waving her hand impatiently. “We need to sneak a note or a message in – are the bathhouses open or sectioned off?”

“Most are sectioned off, with a curtain around each.”

“We sneak in, leave a message or send a note or something for Finn and tell him to take a bath at 13th hour. We wait in a bath station until he gets there. We can stay hidden. No one’s going to go peeking into other people’s baths.”

Kylo was unimpressed. “Guards keep odd hours, someone will be there. And what if he finds it suspicious and doesn’t go? What if he reports it? How are we supposed to get in? How are we supposed to find it? Or find FN – Finn? I haven’t been inside for years.”

“We kidnap two guards, take their outfits, and sneak in.”

“We will both be recognized and we’ll alert the Resistance to our presence.”

Rey huffed in exasperation.

“You’re overthinking this,” he argued. “We should draw Finn out, find a place to meet that’s far from our camp. There’s a creek that runs between Lios and the Resistance camp. I say we camp south of the city and the Resistance base, and travel north, through the creek, so they can’t track us back.”

Rey’s head turned over one shoulder and she stopped just short as the tip of his nose bumped against her temple. Her breath caught in her throat as his mouth hovered near her cheekbone. If he merely whispered, his lips would brush her skin. Their horse hopped ungracefully over a gnarled root protruding from the ground and she lurched forward. His arm instantly snaked around her waist, yanking her tight against his chest. After a second, his arm relaxed and he leaned back, but he didn’t draw his arm away. Instead, he rested it loosely at her hip. Rey swallowed, scrambling to pick up her thoughts, but his fingers almost imperceptibly pressing against the curve of her hipbone sent heat darting down her legs.

“Okay,” she conceded after a moment, almost breathless. “So how do we contact Finn?”

A shadow rippled over her shoulder, followed by another. She looked up, squinting against the rays of the late afternoon sun peeking from behind gray clouds. Crows circled overhead, their shadows crisscrossing over the ground around them. A few of the Knights noticed as well, casting nervous glances overhead.

She licked her lips, then tentatively reached out with her mind. _“Branwen? I need your help.”_

One crow swooped lower and his voice returned to her, distant and sharp. “We will not enter their realm for you.”

She made a noise in her throat, half-irritated, half-disconcerted. She didn’t bother to ask how he knew what she wanted.

“Then why are you following me?”

“You will find your friend near the Lonely Oak, at the moon’s zenith. Your wolf knows the place.”

Exhilaration flooded Rey when the implication of his words sank in. Finn was alive. The crows floated higher into the sky, eventually drifting away and out of sight over the tree tops. Rey watched them disappear with a stymied frown, noting the moon had already risen. Reality crept back to her and she realized Kylo was shaking her shoulder and calling her name.

She shrugged his hand off. “What’s the Lonely Oak?” He grew still behind her and his fingers tightened.

“How do you know about that?” His voice was harsh.

Rey twisted far enough around to see his face. “What is it?” She repeated. He stared hard at her before answering.

“There’s a grove of spruce trees not far from the Resistance base. There’s a single oak growing in the middle. We called it the Lonely Oak. It’s like a landmark for people to find their way back to the base.”

“That’s where we’re supposed to meet Finn,” she stated, turning forward again. “At the moon’s zenith,” she quietly added.

“No, you tell me how you know that.” His hand slipped over her forearm, twisting her back around. She glared at him as she yanked her hand out of his grip. “What’s going on with the birds?”

Her resolve withered and she licked her lips. “They’re shapeshifters,” she began.

“Are you insane?” Kylo growled, interrupting her.

“Would you let me finish?” She growled back. His nostrils flared and he grit his jaw but he quieted.

“They’re allies, or friends, or something.” She shook her head slightly. “I’m not really sure. But they don’t work for the First Order. They certainly don’t like Snoke.”

“They were there last night. When I found you after you turned.”

She nodded absentmindedly. “They brought me there.”

Kylo gazed at her incredulously. “They…brought you there.”

She scowled at him and turned back around. “I don’t really know what happened,” she sighed. “It was like a dream. Or a trance. They woke me up and then I was walking through the woods. They were waiting for me. The one I talked to, I think he’s their leader.”

“ _He?_ ” Kylo grated jealously.

“For gods sake, Kylo, they’re all children.”

“The crow children,” he murmured, thoughtful now.

“What?”

“That’s what you said when I carried you back to camp. You said ‘the crow children started this.’”

Rey grimaced. “I think they made me turn.” She filled Kylo in on the rest of her conversations with Branwen, ending with his information about finding Finn. She’d barely finished before Kylo snorted.

“I don’t like it.”

“I don’t care if you don’t like it. It’s the only thing we have to go on right now.”

“We can’t trust them.”

“Why not?”

“Shapeshifters,” Kylo muttered, “are born out of the Dark side. It’s what makes us.”

Rey’s anger flared. “Did you Snoke tell you that?”

His response was sullen. “Yes. But I don’t need him to tell me that to know it’s true.”

Her mind brushed against his. “You don’t really believe that.”

He laughed harshly. “How could you possibly think otherwise after last night?”

In response, Rey grabbed his wrist and shoved a memory at him.

 “Wha – “ Kylo cut off as her eyes slid shut and images rushed into his mind. Fractured, like looking at something through water. She squeezed his wrist until it hurt. The images snapped into focus. A smooth stone wall, a torch casting flickering gold light across primitive paintings from a people long extinct. Shapeshifters, both human and animal, rushed towards a group of druids. Druids which held red blades. She pulled her memory back abruptly, and her eyes flew open.

“I saw that in the smuggler caves on the way to Maz’s.”

She turned to look at him and they stared at each other for several minutes, her hazel eyes studying his face. Emotions flickered across his features so quickly she wouldn’t know what he was feeling if she couldn’t feel it too. One corner of his mouth turned up and he gazed at her with a mixture of pride and envy. “You shouldn’t be able to do that, you know.”

The lowering sun cast his dark eyes in shades of tawny gold and rich brown. “Do what?” Her question came out breathless.

“Share memories like that.” The intensity of his gaze set her fingers trembling. She broke eye contact and stared forward, pressing her hands into her thighs.

“Why shouldn’t I?” She forced a steady tone.

“It takes training.”

“Maybe I can do it because you did it to me.”

They lapsed into silence as Kylo mulled over the implications of that possibility. Catra slowed her horse, turning him in a circle as she waited for Kylo and Rey to catch up.

“Rhys and Calla found a good campsite, not too close to Lios, probably a little less than an hour from the outskirts of the Resistance base. Surrounding area is secured.”

“How far away do you think we are?”

Her head tilted and she squinted, her eyes unfocused. “Perhaps an hour. We should get there right after sunset.”

Kylo nodded in thanks at Catra’s report and she smiled lightly at them before returning to the rest of the Knights.

Rey nodded towards the woman’s back. “What was she doing just now?”

“Talking to Rhys. They’re twins, and born shapeshifters, so they have the easiest time communicating in their human forms.”

Rey’s gaze swept the other Knights. “They can’t all do that?”

She heard Kylo’s hair rustling as he shook his head. “No, especially not the young ones, like Áinee. She’s only been a shapeshifter for a few years. It’s hard for her even as a wolf.”

Rey recalled the jumble of thoughts and images that had streamed into her mind after she’d turned. “I can relate,” she said softly. “Maybe I’ll talk to her.”

“About what?” Kylo asked icily.

“About being a new shapeshifter. She probably remembers it well.”

Rey didn’t see the pouting downturn of Kylo’s mouth. “I know what you’re going through,” he bit, words clipped. He rested a possessive hand on her shoulder. “You don’t need to talk to her. You can ask me.”

Rey turned her head enough for him to see her frown. “I’ll talk to her if I want to.” 

Kylo’s low growl was almost feral. Her head whipped around, eyes bright and simmering. “Maybe I want to talk to someone who doesn’t know everything I’m feeling before I even have a chance to think about it.”

Kylo’s eyes widened and his eyebrows flashed up hurt and surprise before a glower descended on his face. His lip twitched and he clenched his jaw hard enough that Rey could hear his teeth grating. She turned her back to him but his bitterness was like a physical thing, pressing against her.

“Fine. If you want to talk to someone who can’t truly understand you, go ahead.”

Rey sighed in frustration. “That’s not what it’s about,” she trailed off. Kylo didn’t miss how she hunched forward, carefully holding her body as far from his as possible. She ignored the dark storm of emotions rattling inside him.

Finally he sighed. “I’m sorry,” he said coolly.

She snorted. “Yeah, you sound very sorry.”

She felt him lean forward a hair. “I am,” he insisted, this time his voice tinted with shame and remorse.

She didn’t say anything, but her posture relaxed and she sagged backwards, her shoulder blades again lightly resting against his chest. The storm inside him dissipated.

Kylo’s thoughts turned back. “I still don’t trust this crow kid. Why does he know so much? Why is he helping us now? Awfully convenient. What if it’s a trap?”

Rey sighed at him. “Why not trust him?”

“No one is trustworthy,” Kylo snapped.

“I disagree,” Rey hotly retorted. “Besides,” she murmured, “that’s no way to live.”

Kylo ground his jaw but didn’t respond.

Rey took a deep breath. “We wait at the Lonely Oak tonight. Nothing we can do until then.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm making up for many Reylo-less chapters with excessive Reylo dialogue.


	26. Chapter 26

The skies were clear by the time Rey and Kylo left the Knights to set up camp and rode to the Lonely Oak. Moonlight glinted off trees and snow, leaving everything with an unearthly silver radiance. They left their horse a safe distance from the area and Rey insisted on climbing into a tree for cover. Kylo had to admit it was a good idea when it gave them a clear view of the valley of spruces. The oak tree did indeed look lonely, with a wide, empty margin between its massive trunk and the other trees. 

Kylo heard them coming before she did. Steps crunched through the snow, and the low drone of friendly conversation floated to them. Rey saw the flash of weapons and several people carried swinging carcasses of hunted deer on poles between them. One broad-shouldered figure was familiar. He trudged along more slowly, trailing behind the other hunters. He stumbled, his head whipping around before he started to slow down, discreetly putting distance between himself and the rest of the group. He slipped behind a large spruce. Rey thought for sure that someone would notice, but the rest were busy in conversation. Rey tapped excitedly on Kylo’s arm, pointing at the figure behind the tree.  _ “I know,”  _ he mouthed. Her tapping turned to a tight grip on his shoulder and she bounced on her soles, rustling the thick branch they stood on. He grabbed her waist to still her and jerked his chin towards the group cresting a hill. “Calm down,” he whispered against her ear, the brush of his lips sending a shiver down her back.

But she couldn’t quell her excitement. Finn was alive. He had to know they were there somehow. She itched to scramble down the tree and rush to his side. Kylo kept a tight grip around her waist until he was satisfied the hunters were far out of earshot. He nodded to her. Rey practically fell out of the tree, jumping the last several feet and running to Finn. He appeared from behind the trunk, rushing for her too. She could see his wide smile flashing in the darkness. She launched herself at him, squeezing her eyes against tears. 

“You’re okay, you’re okay,” she repeated into his shoulder. Finally they stepped back, Finn holding her by the shoulders and scanning her frame.

“I’m fine, no injuries,” she assured him. He sighed in relief. His head whipped in Kylo’s direction and his face froze in terror as he saw Kylo approaching with heavy, deliberate steps through the snow.

“It’s okay, he’s with me. It’s fine. He’s safe.” 

Finn’s terrified expression shifted to her and she shook her by the shoulders. “He is not  _ safe _ . He kidnapped you. And he’s a murderer. He’s a shapeshifter.”

She steadily held his gaze, her eyes growing sad. “So am I.” 

Finn’s mouth parted but he didn’t look entirely surprised. “The druids in the First Order base don’t count.” 

Rey’s eyes dropped. “That’s not what I’m talking about,” she whispered. His eyebrows knit in confusion. Kylo reached them, keeping a safe distance from Finn. His hand hovered over his lightsaber and Rey shot him a warning glance. His hand dropped. 

Finn terror turned into a furious frown and he glared at Kylo. Rey looked at Kylo. “Can you give us a minute?” Kylo scowled but moved several paces away. Rey knew he wasn’t far enough not to hear but she turned to Finn anyway. She laid a soft hand on his shoulder, bringing his eyes back to her face. “He left the First Order, Finn.” 

Something in his eyes shifted, then hardened. “Then he’ll bring Snoke right to us. What if he’s lying to you?” 

Rey was already shaking her head, her eyes settled on Kylo. “He can’t lie to me, not about this.” 

“You can’t know that,” Finn argued. 

“I do,” she insisted, looking straight at him. “We, we’re – there’s this connection.” Finn took a step back. 

Rey ignored the way that needled her. “I don’t know how to explain it. But I know him.” She sighed, looking at Kylo again. “For better or worse, I know him.” 

Finn didn’t miss the warmth on her face as she looked at Kylo and revulsion crept into his eyes. He shook his head at her, utterly disgusted. “I can’t believe this. How can you even care for him? How can you even stand to be around him?”

His tone grated on her. “You don’t understand,” she snapped. “I’m a shapeshifter. I just found out my life is a lie. He’s all I have.” 

Deep hurt flashed across Finn’s face. “How can you say that?” he whispered. 

Rey threw up her hands and growled. “This is not how I wanted this conversation to go,” she huffed.

Finn looked abashed. “Me either,” he admitted, kicking at the snow. 

“Okay,” she sighed. “Let’s start over. I’m glad you’re alive. And okay. So glad. More than you can know.” 

Finn smiled lightly at her. “I do know. I was terrified.”

“How did you know we were here?” 

He looked towards the tree they had been hiding in. “I could feel you. You’re presence or essence, or something.” He shook his head in confusion. “Ever since all the stuff I did in the First Order base – it’s like I can feel everyone now. All their lives. Their energy.” 

“That’s not a normal druid thing,” Kylo broke in, calling across the distance between them. 

Finn frowned at him but Kylo rejoined them anyway. 

“I’ve never heard of a druid doing that,” Kylo added. 

“Well, I did,” Finn retorted.

“Then you’re not a normal druid,” Kylo said coolly. Rey glared at him, sending sharp warnings through the bond. The intent was clear.  _ Play nice. _ He huffed at her but begrudgingly agreed. Finn watched their exchange with disturbed curiosity.  

Rey saw his stare and rushed to change the subject. “What’s happening with the Resistance? What about the map?”

Finn blinked at her. “Map?”

Rey stared. “The map! The map to the Claiohm Solais? The map that started this all?”

Finn wilted a little. “Worthless. It’s all gibberish. Doesn’t correspond with any known landform. It might be in code, but if it is, we need the key. And we have no idea where to find that.” Finn pursed his lips before slowly continuing. “And they’re not the Resistance anymore.”

Rey sharply inhaled. 

“What happened to them?” Kylo demanded with a small measure of panic. Rey looked at him sideways, thinking of his mother.

“With the capital destroyed, the Republic is essentially gone. A few officials and nobles rushed to the Resistance – the few of them who survived and knew where to go.” He paused, gaze darting to Kylo. “General Organa is now Chancellor Organa. The Resistance basically took over the Republic.” 

Kylo snorted. “Foolish of them. It will only make the First Order more determined to completely wipe them out. They know where your base is, you know.” 

Finn’s features were pinched. “They do?” 

Kylo nodded. Finn rubbed his temples wearily. “I have to tell her.” 

“What’s their plan?” Rey asked him. 

Finn deliberated with his words before responding. “They’re going after the First Order. Eventually. What else can they do?”

Kylo was shaking his head. “Even more foolish,” he grated. “You know you’re all marching to your own deaths, right?”

“Kylo!” Rey gasped.

“It’s true!” He insisted with a sweep of his arm. “The Resistance is too small.” 

“Leia - Chancellor Organa - she’s going to assemble an army from anyone who will join. She’s trying to convince Lios to join them. The city officials want to surrender.”

Kylo looked unimpressed. “They should. Fighting won’t do any good. It’ll just get more people dead.” 

Finn growled. “I thought Rey said you left the First Order.” 

“I’m just telling the truth,” Kylo defended himself. 

Finn and Kylo glared at each other in tense silence. “What are you two going to do?” He finally asked Rey.

She and Kylo looked at each other for a long second. “I don’t really know,” Rey admitted. 

“I could ask Chancellor Organa if you could come– “ Finn reluctantly began.

“No!” Rey and Kylo responded in unison. “At least not yet.” Rey thought back to Branwen’s warning about the shapeshifters headed their way. “We have some stuff to figure out first,” she said, vaguely. Kylo’s eyebrows came together. 

Finn held up his hands. “Okay, okay, I won’t say anything, yet. But I think she deserves to know, eventually.” 

“You’re suddenly very loyal, for a traitor,” Kylo scoffed. Rey looked like the wanted to deck him in the face. 

“It’s hard to be loyal to an army that destroyed your village and killed your father,” Finn snapped at him. 

“If they hadn’t fought back, we wouldn’t have had to destroy them!” Kylo blazed. 

Finn ground his teeth, speechless. Rey looked even more furious. He tore his gaze from Kylo and only looked at Rey. “I have to get back, they’re going to notice I’m gone.” 

Her shoulders slumped. “I know. Can we meet back here in three days? At the high moon.” 

Finn nodded. Rey stepped forward and threw her arms around him. He gratefully returned her hug. No matter the circumstances, he was overjoyed to see her again. She gazed after him sadly as he started to walk away. “Wait, Finn!” She called out. He halted, looking over his shoulder. “I completely forgot to ask. How is everyone else? Did they…survive?”

Finn nodded. “Sparrow was the only one who didn’t make it.” 

“And Han,” Rey added, dejected. Kylo visibly stiffened beside her.

Finn looked confused, slowly shaking his head. “No,” he said. “He’s alive. Barely. Fell off a wall or something.” 

Rey’s jaw dropped and her eyes flew to Kylo. Finn noticed his stunned expression and grew more confused. 

Kylo shook his head, eyes dazed. “You’re wrong,” he said, voice hoarse.

Finn made a face at him. “He’s definitely alive. He’s in some kind of a coma.” 

Kylo was trembling now, still shaking his head. Rey reached for his arm but he stepped swiftly back, turning and stalking through the snow with long strides. “Kylo!” Rey called out after him, clearly distressed.

“Rey?” Finn questioned, completely lost. 

“Kylo is Han’s son,” she explained with a short tone. “Han and Leia’s.” Finn’s jaw worked as he tried to think of something to say. 

“Wha-what?”

Rey blew out an exasperated breath. “It’s complicated. I can’t explain right now.” She looked after Kylo’s retreating figure with such deep concern that it alarmed Finn. “Please don’t share that with anyone. I have to go, I’m sorry.” She rushed off after Kylo before Finn could say anything else. He was clearly missing some large piece of the puzzle. He reluctantly returned to the Resistance base.  _ The Republic, now, _ he reminded himself. He wondered if he should ask Leia about it, but somehow that seemed wrong at the moment. When he reached his assigned quarters, he found Poe pacing back and forth in the tiny shack. 

“Where have you been?” He burst out when Finn opened the door. “The hunting party came back without you and no one had any idea where you went.” 

Finn smiled ruefully. “I had to pee, so I snuck off. Then I got lost.” 

Poe folded his arms and raised an eyebrow. “Bull.” 

“All of it,” he chuckled.  He chewed his lip for a minute, deliberating. “I found Rey,” he said. Poe’s face lit up. “She was with Kylo.” 

Poe’s mouth twisted but he didn’t say anything. “How did you find them?”

“They found me.” Finn shared the rest of their conversation with him. Most of it. “Poe, I have to ask you something.”

Poe raised his eyebrows. “Okay?”

“Did Han and Leia only have one son?”

Poe’s eyes grew wary. “Yes, Ben. Why?”

“Is Kylo Ren Ben Solo?”

Instead of looking surprised, Poe sighed, plopping down on a rickety chair. “Yes.” 

Finn’s jaw dropped. “How many people know this?” 

“Very, very few. Most people think Ben Solo is dead, killed by a shapeshifter.” 

“So what really happened?” 

Poe stared at Finn for several seconds, deep conflict warring in his wide brown eyes. When he spoke his voice was hoarse. “If I tell you, you can never ever tell anyone. Especially not Rey.” 

Finn made a confused face. “Rey? What does this have to do with Rey?”

“Promise me you will never say anything.”

“I can’t promise to lie to Rey.” 

Poe was shaking his head. “If she’s with Kylo, then you can’t share this with her. It’s his to share, now.” 

“You’re kind of scaring me,” Finn chuckled nervously. 

“Promise. Me.” 

Finn nodded slowly. “I’m probably going to regret it, but I promise.” He gave Poe a little smile. Poe didn’t smile back.

* * *

Rey quickly caught up to Kylo, jogging beside him to keep up with his long-legged pace. He didn’t look at her. She yanked on his arm. “Kylo!” She exclaimed. “Please stop for a second.” He barely glanced at her before ripping his arm away and continuing on. She growled, running after him. His stride flagged and he looked over at her. 

“I don’t have words,” he said. She believed him. The bond was a riot of indistinguishable emotions. 

“But, this is good,” she insisted. “He’s still alive.”

“But I still let him die!” Kylo roared. “It doesn’t change what I did. I watched him fall and I didn’t do anything.” He was quiet for a minute. When he spoke up again, his voice was fractured and pained. “And I still don’t know whether I regret it or not.”

Rey took in a sharp breath. “I refuse to believe you don’t truly regret it,” she instantly replied. But even to herself, her words sounded forced. Kylo didn’t respond. 

They rode all the way back to camp in silence. 

When they approached their tents, Rey noticed all the Knights were ringed around two much smaller figures crouched on the ground. When they got closer, she gasped and jumped off the horse, pushing her way between Calla and Dax. Two rail-thin girls, looking not much older than 15 or 16, sat on the ground, ankles tied and arms bound behind their backs. Long, vibrant red hair spilled down their shoulders, framing nearly identical narrow, heart-shaped faces. They turned their gazes in unison to Rey with mirrored amusement in their slanted eyes.

Rey glared at the Knights, motioning to the girls. “Explain!”

“They snuck into our camp,” Calla said. 

“They won’t answer any of our questions,” Rhys grumbled over Calla. 

“They were heavily armed,” Dax added, pointing to the pile of knives not far from them. One of the small blades was bloodied.  

Rey gaped at them. “They’re just children!” 

Catra rubbed her shoulder, which Rey noticed was freshly bandaged. “They don’t fight like children,” she winced.

Rey turned her attention to the captives. Her gaze caught on their eyes. Deep amber irises, so large she barely saw white, flashed in the fire light. Their hooded tilt looked vaguely familiar. She shook it off. “If I untie you, will I regret it?”

“They attacked us first,” said one girl.

“We will not threaten you,” said the other. 

Satisfied, Rey grabbed one of their knives and sliced through the restraints. The girls rubbed their wrists and ankles gratefully. 

Catra leaned over Rey’s shoulder. “They said they will only talk to the white wolf.” 

Rey dropped the knife and jumped to her feet. “How do you know about me? Who are you?” 

The girls blinked their eerie eyes at each other, and then responded. They spoke almost as one person, their words flowing into each other.

“I’m Dahlia,”

“And I’m her twin, Delta.”

“We’ve come to seek your protection,”

“And to fight for you,” 

“To fight under your banner,”

“The banner of you and your black wolf.”

Kylo cut them off. “There will be no fighting  _ for _ anyone, and we’re not going to take care of you.” Rey glared at him over her shoulder and he quieted. 

“He’s not wrong,” she addressed them. “You can stay with us, but we’re not your…leaders, or whatever you think we are.” 

The sister Rey thought was Delta spoke up. “But Branwen said – “ Dahlia hissed at her and she snapped her mouth shut. 

Rey smiled grimly. “Ah, Branwen. Of course. Well, it’s Branwen, no one can really ever be sure of what he means, can they?”

Catra leaned down again, her mouth near Rey’s ear. “Do you think it’s wise to have humans in our camp?” She murmured. 

Rey sat back on her heels, still watching the sisters. “They’re not humans,” she answered loudly. “They’re shapeshifters, aren’t you?”

The girls nodded in unison and Rey heard several gasps. Someone ignited their lightsaber. “Put that away,” she growled without turning around. She leaned closer to the girls. “You have supplies? A tent?”

They nodded. She pointed towards her and Kylo’s tent. “Put it up near that one.” She stood up, looking at Kylo, who stared into the distance. 

“Hael and the others are close. Very close. They’ll be here within a few minutes,” he told her. His eyes narrowed at the sisters. “It would be best for you to stay in your tent until morning.”

The girls nodded, unfolding their long limbs and gathering their things. Rey eyed every Knight closely. “These girls are not to be harmed. If you touch them, you will answer for it.” They nodded, but Rey caught several troubled glances pass among them and more than a few resentful looks at her. The girls slinked off, their movements sly and sinuous and Rey had an inkling of what kind of creatures they were. The Knights clustered around her and Kylo. Calla curved a perfectly shaped eyebrow. “We have some questions.” 

Rey looked to Kylo. “When the others get here,” she answered. Calla’s lips thinned sourly and she nodded. Rey grabbed Kylo’s forearm and tugged him away, towards their tent. He waited until they were inside to speak. 

“How many more are coming, Rey?”

She shook her head. “I have no idea.” She dropped exhaustedly onto the cold floor of the tent, the lumpy ground poking into her knees. Rey could barely see in the dark tent, but Kylo didn’t seem to have that problem. He moved around her, unrolling their bedrolls and blankets. She yelped in protest when his arm suddenly hooked around her waist and he yanked her into the air. She wriggled against his chest but his arm was like a steel bar over her chest. He shuffled some blankets around and then set her back down atop them. She glared at him and she thought she heard a snicker. 

“How come I don’t have all that magical wolfy hearing and night-vision ability stuff yet?”

“You do,” he said, settling down next to her. “But it requires you to hover in a state right on the border between being human and starting to shift. And that requires control. And you do not have that.”

He winced when he heard her chest hitch and reached for her hand. “Rey, I’m sorry. That’s not what  I meant.” 

The faces of the father and son were never far from her mind, ready at any second to stare at her with undeniable accusation. She wanted to yank her hand away, to shout and yell and cry and rail at him, tell him that this was all his fault. But it was, and it wasn’t. She let his fingers twine around hers. Even with gloves, his hands were chilling, and they sucked the heat out of her skin. She slipped her fingers out of his and he stiffened, already starting to lean away. She turned his hand over and tugged at the fingertips one by one, gently pulling the thick material off his hand. It made a soft swish as it fell to her lap. She traced one finger over the crisscrossing lines of his palm, savoring the way his breath sharpened when her finger strayed to the inside of his wrist. 

Kylo gulped, nearly choking on the heavy breath when Rey drew featherlight spirals into the skin of his wrist. He wished his sleeves weren’t nearly so tight. He wished she’d never taken his glove off. He wished she would take the other one off too. He cleared his throat roughly. “I can’t believe all these shapeshifters exist without Snoke knowing.” 

Rey’s finger stopped for a heartbeat. “Maybe he does. Maybe,” she trailed off. She bent further over his wrist.

Kylo craned his head towards her. “Rey?”

She looked up, and he thought he saw a shimmer in her eyes. ”Maybe he’s right about us. Maybe werewolves are more Dark than Light. What if other shapeshifters are not that way? Wolves are driven to hunt and live in packs. Not all animals are like that.” 

“We’re not just animals,” he softly reminded her. “We’re also human. Humans have free will.”

She looked down again. “We have free will as humans. We can fight for what we please. But I don’t think we can be Light. Not as wolves. When I turned - that’s not free will. I was gone.” 

He squeezed her fingers. “It won’t always be that way,” he urged. 

She glanced at him sideways. “But the hunger is always there, isn’t it?”

Kylo’s mouth twisted.

“I can feel it inside you all the time. The violence never goes away. How can we exist in peace?”

He smirked. “Maybe it’s just me.” 

The sound of hoofbeats interrupted them. Rey only heard one rider, but Kylo wasn’t alarmed. Outside, two wolves flanked the lone rider she’d heard, a tall, dark-skinned woman with her long hair in uniform, ribbon-thin braids. The ends were decorated with multicolored beads, their careful arrangement creating a mesmerizing pattern as they moved. Rey immediately recognized one of the wolves as the gray wolf who bit her. She didn’t realize her hand was on her saber until Kylo slipped his fingers around hers, trying to discreetly pull it away. But the gray wolf’s citrine eyes followed their movements with casual precision. 

The woman nodded at Kylo and dismounted. “Good to see you in health, sir.”

“Nell Zuria,” Kylo nodded back. “Same to you.” 

Nell Zuria swung off the horse in one fluid movement, swooping into a graceful bow in front of Rey. Rey gaped at the taller woman, following her bow with wide eyes. “You’re much smaller than I imagined,” she told Rey, but her smile held no trace of malice. 

Rey swallowed. “No one’s ever bowed to me before,” she chuckled uncomfortably. “Please don’t ever do that again.” 

Nell Zuria’s smile widened. “You should get used to it. And please, call me Zuri.” 

Rey returned her smile. “I’m Rey. Oh, well I suppose you knew that, apparently.” Zuri didn’t seem to be off-put by her awkward introductions, and gestured towards the two other wolves. “I need to get their things so they can shift.” 

Rey nodded, stepping back to Kylo’s side. Her hand twitched nervously against the rough weave of his cloak she still wore.  _ People are going to bow? Why are people bowing? I don’t want anyone to bow. _ Her internal chatter shut off when Kylo’s hand brushed against hers. He hadn’t replaced his glove, and his touch buzzed through her. He curled his fingers closely around hers for a moment before his hand dropped away. 

Two other people stood next to Zuri now, both dressed in simple tunics and trousers, fastening heavy cloaks around their shoulders and strapping on lightsabers. One was a short woman with a solid build and pin-straight black hair that fell to her waist. She grinned at Rey with a dazzlingly enthusiastic smile before bouncing in and out of a bow. “I’m Ellis! And that’s Hael.” She pointed to the tall man standing next to her, his muscled arms crossed tensely across his chest. He was ruggedly handsome, with a wide jaw covered in roguish stubble and icy blue eyes. But his heavy glower gave his features a threatening look. Unconsciously, she stepped closer to Kylo. Her unease pinged between them, and he brought a protective hand to the small of her back, his shoulders curling in towards her. 

Hael just stared at her and then grunted with a decidedly contemptuous tone. His eyes slid to Kylo. “What’s our status?” 

Kylo paused for a heartbeat, eyeing Hael. “Rey is about to share important information with everyone. Everyone please gather around the fire.” 

Excited murmurs passed through the Knights but Hael curled his lip at her. Ellis looked between Hael and Rey, openly miffed at him. She shoved against Hael’s brawny frame with two hands. He didn’t even sway. “Move you giant dope! Let’s get this over with. I want to go to sleep. I’m exhausted.” 

Rey watched Ellis spring to the fire, thinking that if this was Ellis exhausted, she was scared to see Ellis energetic. Hael paced slowly behind her.

Rey tried to smile, shifting uncomfortably under the stares of all the Knights. Kylo, with his hand still pressed to her back, nodded encouragingly at her.

“Th-thank you all for being here,” she began, faltering.  _ They’re not at a wedding, Rey. _ She took a slow look around at the group, took a deep breath, and straightened her back. She wasn’t their leader. Or at least, she didn’t feel like it. She didn’t have leaderly words for them, so she wasn’t going to try.

“I have some information that might shock you or scare you,” she restarted. Eyes widened expectantly, shoulders stiffened, and everyone leaned in. “We might disagree about what it means, but I find hope in it.” She stepped away from Kylo’s touch against her back, instead reaching for his hand with her own. 

“Wolves are not the only shapeshifters. There are more kinds, many more. I don’t know how many. We don’t know if Snoke knows about them, only that they do not align themselves with the First Order. I don’t think they align themselves with the Republic, either. And we all know how the Resistance feels about shapeshifters.” Kylo’s fingers twitched in her hand at her last words.

“Why are you telling us this?” Calla asked. 

Rey took another deep breath. “Because they’re coming here.”

Eyebrows furrowed and mouths turned down. 

“Here?” Calla spoke again. 

“To Lios?” Rhys followed.

Rey shook her head. “No, to us,” she pointed at the ground under her.

Several Knights rose to their feet and Hael took alarmed steps towards her. “How do they know we’re here?” Hael demanded. “Who’s giving our position away? We have to get out of here now -”

Zuri grabbed his arm, cutting him off. “Let her finish.” 

Rey nodded gratefully at her. “There’s a group of shapeshifters, they’re like guardians or messengers or something, I’m not really sure.”

Kylo sent a shot of warning to her. The intent was clear: be careful what you say. She frowned lightly at him, trying to force her thoughts into feelings before responding.  _ I want to be honest with them. _ She wasn’t sure what Kylo got out of it, but he didn’t seem confused. His emotions remained tight and wary. 

“Their leader is named Branwen, and he found me last, uh, last night.” She considered Kylo’s warning and decided to leave out the part about Branwen and the rest being children or how he had the ability to make her turn. The three newcomers looked confused, but Rey didn’t want to recount last night’s events anymore than she had to - someone else could fill them in. 

“He told me many shapeshifters will be coming to us, for protection, for safety.” 

“Safety from what?” Calla asked, her voice an octave higher than before. Everyone looked more confused. 

“I don’t know,” Rey sighed. 

“Can we trust them?” Rhys asked. “What about those girls that showed up tonight?” 

Rey looked towards Delta and Dahlia’s tent. “I think we can trust them. We don’t have any reason not to trust them.”

“They’re shapeshifters and strangers, that’s enough reason!” Calla protested. Áinee opened her mouth like she wanted to say something but Rhys cut her off. 

“You can’t expect us to put our lives on the line for some girls who aren’t even in our pack.” Rhys’ voice was rising. Murmurs of agreement rose from the group. 

Rey held up her hands, trying to quiet the group, but more questions rose, clamouring together until the only thing she could pick out was their discord. 

Hael’s grating voice rose above the others. “I defect from the First Order, putting my life in grave danger for days to throw them off your tracks, only to find a confused little girl in charge, telling us all the things she doesn’t know, except that we’re expected to somehow protect a bunch of shapeshifters no one new existed until last night, and from who? Oh she doesn’t know!  _ We’re _ the ones that need protection.” 

Something in Rey snapped. Dimly, she registered the crystalline hum of her lightsaber as it ignited in her hand.  She whipped her head towards Hael and advanced on him, furious, sweeping the blade towards his neck.

Kylo felt the dam break in Rey too late. She was out of reach and at Hael’s neck in one heartbeat, her blue blade thrumming inches from his jugular, the front of his cloak bunched in her fist.

“I would appreciate your respectful silence while I finish talking,” she growled at him. Her skin shone with a silver luminescence and her eyes flashed golden. All the Knights were on their feet now, holding their breaths and waiting for Rey to spring. Rey shoved Hael back with a strength that surprised him. He stumbled a few steps, rubbing his neck where the lightsaber had left his skin hot. 

She looked around at the Knights, expecting to see anger or hostility. But she didn’t, she realized with some surprise. They just looked scared. Her voice was steady when she spoke again.

“You are all welcome to go back to the First Order, if that’s what you want. But I don’t believe it’s what you’re looking for. If I know anything about the First Order, it’s that they’ve taken something from all of you.” Áinee swallowed and looked away. Catra and Rhys shared looks. Dax was staring at his feet. Beyond the fire, Kylo saw Delta and Dahlia had left their tent and were standing silently in the shadows, watching her. 

“The Republic is gone.” Rey could barely speak the words, they felt foreign in her mouth. “And you can’t join the Resistance. And you can’t go back to the First Order. You left to follow Kylo and me because there is no where else to turn.” She looked back at Kylo, her face twisted. “That’s why I’m here. Because I have no other choice.” 

Kylo couldn’t even try to pretend her words didn’t dig deep holes in him. He felt Rey pull at their bond, questioning. He abruptly shoved her out, slamming down shields. She grit her jaw at him and turned back to the group. 

“So we’re here now and I’m giving you your first choice. You can leave - run, hide, whatever you want. Or you can stay. But if you stay, you follow  _ me _ and you follow Kylo. We will try to answer your questions as best as we can. I know you’re scared, but you have to trust us. Something bigger than all of us is happening and it’s become our responsibility. I can’t have a pack that questions me at every turn. I hope you decide to stay. But if you do, never forget who your Alpha is.” 

Rey stood before the Knights with calm resolve, her lightsaber casting blue tones over her still luminescent skin and her eyes glowing golden. She looked like some ethereal goddess from the stories every child was told at bedtime. But through his dissolving shields, Kylo could feel her doubt and dread. 

She extinguished her saber. “Now everyone go to sleep. We’re all exhausted and we have a lot of planning to do tomorrow.” She waved at Catra and then Hael, Ellis, and Zuri. “Can you fill them in on everything else?” Catra nodded smartly at Rey, who spun on her heel and marched towards her tent. She heard Kylo follow her in and fasten the flap behind them. Her skin was back to it’s regular tone and her eyes were dark. She collapsed into a heap with a groan, pulling off her boots and cloak and throwing them haphazardly into a pile. Kylo followed suit, but neatly lined his boots up next to the tent entrance, setting her boots next to his in a straight line and shaking out and folding both their cloaks. They crawled under the blankets, laying side by side on their backs. Rey stared at Kylo and Kylo stared at the ceiling. 

“Well?” Rey broke out finally. 

Kylo turned his face to hers. “Well, what?” 

“How do you think it went?” Rey’s voice hung on the edge of friendly curiosity and something deeper. 

Kylo didn’t need to say anything. The bond flooded her with pride until her chest ached. Her breath caught and she looked away from him, more confused.  _ Kylo Ren is proud of me. And I wanted him to be. _ Some small part of Rey curled with disgust. She rolled onto her side, back to him. 

Kylo felt it. Part of her glowed from his response but part of her was dismayed by her own reaction. He couldn’t stop hearing her words from her impassioned fire-side speech. 

“Did you really mean it?” 

Rey rolled onto her back again. “Mean what?”

“That you’re here with me because you have no other choice.” 

“Isn’t that why you’re here, too?” Rey responded after a beat. 

“I’m here because you’re here,” he said quietly. 

Rey sat up, twisting to face him. “So if I left and went to join the First Order, you would follow me and go back to work for Snoke?”

Kylo propped himself up on an elbow. “Yes,” he said simply. 

Her mouth opened and closed. “And if by some miracle the Resistance let us return, and I decided to fight for them, you would follow me there too?”

“Yes,” he repeated, his eyes tracking her hands as they dug through her tangled hair. She let out a frustrated growl. “So what exactly is it that you believe in?” 

“I believe in us.” 

She slammed her hands down. “There is no  _ us _ !” 

Kylo tossed aside the blankets and sat up, his face inches from hers. “Then what were all those things you just told the Knights? Were you lying?”

“No! I wasn’t lying, I was just-”

“You gave them the choice to stay here and follow  _ us _ .” Kylo’s words slowed and he rested his hand on top of hers. She stared down at it, then turned her hand over and wound her fingers with his. 

“I know,” she admitted softly. “But neither of us chose this,” she drew an invisible line from her chest to his. 

Kylo tensed. “Is this really so horrible?” 

Rey wished she could see his face in the darkness. She had no answer for him. 

He leaned closer, his voice dropping. “When is the last time you felt lonely?” 

Rey’s mouth opened to protest his question but memories rushed back. 

_ Kylo bent over her and raised one gloved hand towards her face, his body curling around her. His hand tickled against escaped strands of hair. _

_ “You’re so lonely,” he murmured. _

She met his gaze in the dark. His eyes were just deep hollows but Rey could feel his stare tunneling into her, pulling out her words. 

“Not since…not since that night,” She whispered with a hint of wonder. They stared steadily at each other and then Rey sighed, dropping her head to rest on his shoulder. “Kylo, what are we going to do?” He rested his hand on the back of her head, smoothing down her mussed hair. 

“We’re going to go to sleep,” he answered with a hint of amusement. 

She sighed heavily. “That’s a good plan.” 

They laid back down in content silence. But when Rey closed her eyes and her mind quieted, dead green eyes stared back at her. She gasped, her eyes flying open. She tried to clear the images, but they wouldn’t go away. Kylo’s hand found hers again. The images dimmed, flickering. She turned, nestling into his arms, letting the feeling of his body cradling hers block out her thoughts. She knew this meant something different to him than it did to her. But she just wanted to sleep. 


	27. Chapter 27

Rey was becoming tired of never being alone in her thoughts.

Branwen gave no warning, his cold, tasteless presence appeared in her mind out of the darkness, followed by his dark features and ghostly skin.

If it wasn’t for the black void stretching around them, she wouldn’t be entirely sure she was still asleep.

“Are you going to make me turn into a wolf and kill people again?” she asked with weary spite. Branwen barely acknowledged her, glancing over his shoulder with a swiftness that Rey almost missed.

“Listen to me,” he started.

“ I’m _listening_ , although I know I’ll just have more questions and less answers when you’re done.”

“Shut up and listen to me,” he hissed and Rey stopped short. In his anger, his voice acquired the lightest tilt of an accent, his vowels going sharp and his voice hooking up at the end of the sentence. Rey filed the sound away for future study.

“There is an army on the way,” he said, his words keen and low. He glanced over his shoulder again and Rey followed his eyes. She saw nothing in the darkness.

“The First Order?”

“No,” he snapped, words like twisted metal. “An army to challenge the First Order.”

Rey’s mouth went dry. Branwen stepped up to her, nearly toe-to-toe, and yet she didn’t feel as though she was stooping to look into his face, she felt as though he was the one leaning down to her. There was a part of him that was entirely un-childlike – ancient, dark, enduring.

“You _have_ to find a way to get Snoke out of your wolf’s mind. This is very important. Many paths are coming together.”

“H-how do I do that?” Rey questioned, distantly remembering Branwen calling himself a path-finder.

He grew even more rattled and Rey could almost hear the sound of ruffling feathers. “I don’t know! That is not for me to know! Can’t you do this one thing by yourself?”

Rey’s eyes narrowed. “Yes. I never asked for your help.”

Branwen glared back. “If you knew what was to come and I’d given you the choice, you would have asked.”

He turned and his muscles rippled, ready to jump into the darkness.

“Wait!” Rey’s cry echoed painfully into the void and Branwen’s head whipped around.

“What happens if we don’t get rid of Snoke?”

Branwen’s eyes were swallowed by shadows. “You will wonder off the path, lost in darkness. Do not let that happen.”

He launched into the air like a child leaping for the sky and disappeared, black on black. Rey’s mind melted back into slumber.

They were woken right after sunrise by a frantic Catra banging on their tent wall.

“Wake up, get out here, now!” she hissed at them.

“Give us a damn minute, Catra,” Kylo growled at her while they scrambled to yank on their boots and grab their weapons. Rey blinked blurry eyes at the sun glinting off the snow, pausing when she saw the huddle of Knights waiting with Catra. Then she looked over their heads and she froze mid-step. Kylo bumped into her from behind, catching her forearm when she almost fell over. His fingers instantly tightened as he saw what provoked Catra’s worry.  Right at the tree line, a solid wall of fog surrounded their camp. Rey’s hand floated involuntarily towards it. The fog could be frosted glass and she wanted to touch it. Her eyes traveled up and she gasped. Above the fog rising in the distance was a group of enormous, towering tents in blinding white, rich scarlet, and a velvety black. Red pennants snapped in the wind from every tent, but they were too far away to make out the black and white design in their centers. She looked up at Kylo, whose gaze was focused on the nearest pennant. His bloodless lips registered one second after the ripple of disbelief.

“What is it?” She asked in a low tone. His mouth opened and shut while the rest of the Knights’ eyes flickered uneasily between them and the pennants.

“I don’t know,” he responded flatly. She felt the lie in her chest. Before she could protest, Kylo was growling at the Knights. “Who fell asleep on watch?”

The Knights exchanged troubled looks.

“Everyone,” Catra answered for them. “Everyone fell asleep, no one heard anything. Not the slightest rustle. They’re still out.” She pointed to Dax and Áinee, slumped against a tree, eyes slitted. Rey thought they looked drugged. The other Knights wore mirrored expressions of alarm.

“Enchantment. They were written,” Kylo told Rey.

“Written?”

Kylo mimicked the fluid motion of a glyph she didn’t recognize, but assumed was responsible for putting everyone to ‘sleep.’

“The veiled sleep. It means they have druids among them, and many,” he explained to Rey. Kylo started barking orders at the Knights but her attention was drawn to the flame-haired twins, who watched them from a distance. Arms crossed, one hip jutted out in identical fashion, they didn’t look the least bit surprised, but instead seemed amused.

Movement in the fog caught everyone’s attention. The clearing filled with the hum of lightsabers and the fog acquired a pink glow. Kylo stepped closer to Rey, edging her behind him. She glared and stepped up next to him. He glared back.

The movement turned into shadows and a man and woman stepped into the clearing. The woman cut a powerful figure. Although her tall frame was draped in simple navy garments, the flow and sweep of the fabric indicated an expensive material. Long, silky black hair framed sharp features and dark, glittering eyes. Rey could only guess at her age. She didn’t seem young, but her deep copper skin was smooth and she lacked the tired aura that came with old age. The man trailed just slightly behind her. He shared the woman’s keen features, but his shorter, wiry frame and narrow face made them severe. He seemed much younger, with a loose stride. His eyes appeared to wander casually around the clearance but Rey could see his gaze move methodically over every detail.

The woman’s eyes, however, were locked on Rey. A growl shook Kylo as they approached. Rey’s arm shot out in front of him. “They’re unarmed.”

“So? Druids don’t need weapons.”

“They won’t hurt us,” Rey insisted. Kylo wavered at the confidence in her voice but kept his lightsaber ignited.

The pair stopped a safe distance away. “We come in peace,” the woman called out. Rey stepped forward before Kylo could stop her, drawn like a magnet to the woman.

The woman’s inky eyes never left Rey. As she drew closer, the light glimmered on an object woven into her hair. Rey blinked. A feather, she realized, black and glossy.

“I am Saritas, and this is my brother Lematin.” The lilted accent and sharpness of her vowels tugged at Rey’s memory.

Lematin nodded his head. “Pleased to meet the last Vivant.” His words came out honey-smooth but his lip curled with disgust as he said her name. Rey had given up asking how everyone knew who she was, but his obvious distaste was new. Kylo had scarcely reached her side before he swept a hand to the fog and tents.

“Explain,” he demanded.

Rey shot him heavy disapproval through the bond and felt him nettle in response.

Saritas arched an eyebrow. “Surely you were told of our coming.”

“Yes,” responded Rey at the same time Kylo answered “no.”

Kylo’s frustration brushed against her. She rose up on her tiptoes to whisper in his ear. “Branwen told me, last night.”

Kylo bristled. “When were you going to tell _me_?”

“I didn’t get a chance,” she growled in his ear. Kylo made an annoyed noise in the back of his throat.

“You must come with me, we have much to discuss,” Saritas said.

Rey folded her arms. “Not without Kylo,” came the automatic reply.

“Fine,” Saritas responded with a trace of annoyance.

“And my Knights come with me,” Kylo insisted.

She sharply shook her head. “Absolutely not.”

“Two,” Rey argued. She felt Kylo keenly – wound tight, with a spring-like tension that had turned brittle and ready to snap. “That’s perfectly reasonable.”

Saritas and Rey stared at each other until Saritas backed down. “Fine,” she said again with more annoyance. 

“Catra, Hael,” Kylo called over his shoulder. The last person Rey wanted with them was Hael, but she bit back her protests. They had already gotten off to a bad start.

Saritas turned and plunged into the fog without preamble. Kylo looked over his shoulder at the rest of the Knights as they followed her. A voice tickled Rey’s mind. Kylo’s, she realized, but heavily distorted as if through a thick wall. She focused, leaning into the sound, and his words grew distinct. He was giving them instructions to spread out along the clearing – who should shift and who should remain armed. Rhys was to follow them. A communication relay, she realized. Catra could easily communicate with Rhys, who could communicate with the rest of the pack.

Rey and Kylo fell into step together. “I understand wanting to keep communication, but do you really think that’s wise?” she said to him, nearly inaudible.

His eyes widened. “You heard that? You understood it?”

Rey nodded. “Most of it.”

His glace was part approving, part envious. “It shouldn’t be so easy for you.”

“What?”

He threw up his arms. “Everything!”

“Maybe I know how because you know how,” she suggested. “If I can feel what you feel, why can’t I know what you know?” It was very much like her earlier theory that she could do what he did to her, but a step farther. Kylo fell silent, mulling over the idea. 

Saritas led them through the trees without faltering. The fog was so dense Rey could barely see in front of her. Kylo still held his glowing saber, but hers dangled unlit from her hand. The other, she realized, gripped Kylo’s much tighter than she held her saber.

 _Since when did you become a frightened, hand-holding sap?_ She berated herself. _And with Kylo._ But she wasn’t afraid. His touch should feel like violence, she reminded herself. But it just felt like serenity.

They stepped through the fog into the brilliant morning’s sun. As Rey’s eyes adjusted, she gaped at the sprawl of tents in a large field. A traveling city, she realized. Not entirely uncommon. They offered specialty services, entertainment, and traded goods one wouldn’t normally find most towns. It was no army.

The snap of fabric in the wind drew her gaze to the pennants she couldn’t see before. She almost stumbled as she stared up at them.

“Kylo,” she whispered, disturbed. “What the hell.”

“I know,” he replied.

On the blood red background was a stylized emblem of a wolf’s face. But the face was split down the center, one half black, the other white, and joined along a sinuous, S-shaped line. She thought of the two carved wolf figures in her pouch – one black, one white. Dread spilled through her middle. Kylo squeezed her hand in response.

“What in the hells is going on,” muttered Hael from behind.

Saritas led them into a striped, rectangular tent near the middle of the group. Inside, curtained walls sectioned off the large area into rooms. They filed down a narrow hallway to one at the back of the tent. She gestured at the large cushions decorating a thickly piled carpet. “Please sit.”

Rey’s mouth settled into a hard line. She was getting impatient. “I think not.”

Lematin stood in a shadow behind Saritas, managing to look like he was slouched against the wall without touching anything.

Kylo’s impatience vibrated, spurring on Rey’s. He spoke for them all. “What is all this?”

Saritas inclined her head politely. “Your army.”

A heavy silence met her words. Hael began to chuckle before it turned into a full laugh, harsh and dry. Rey’s mind turned to her meeting with Branwen, and she felt Kylo sway as the memory turned into his as well. They exchanged looks, his full of respect.

Hael fell quiet. “You’re serious.”

“Unfortunately,” Lematin spoke up. He spun a flashing dagger between his fingers with ease.

“This is a traveling town,” Hael sneered.

“More than half the residents are shifters,” Saritas said with quiet relish. “Most of the rest are druids. We have very few mere humans among us.” Lematin’s face filled with open resentment as his sister spoke.

Hael was entirely silent now and Saritas continued. “And we are just the beginning. Druids, shapeshifters, others whose powers have such ancient names that few still know them. We’ve lived in hiding from the Republic, and then the Empire, the New Republic, and now again from the First Order. We are done hiding.” Her eyes gleamed.

Catra spoke, voice thin but steady. “How can you possibly expect us to believe hundreds or thousands of shifters and druids have been hiding for what, decades?”

“Centuries,” corrected Saritas. “Some for longer. Shifters once lived in freedom, working side-by-side with druids to protect the Empire. Our free state was led harmoniously by a Force-bonded pair.” She looked meaningfully from Rey to Kylo. “Although some fought against the Republic with Dark druids, we remained a powerful force for peace. But those who do not have power fear it. As humans grew in number, they turned against us, most aided by druids. First came blind ignorance, then intolerance. Finally, genocide.” An ancient grief tugged at Saritas’ features. “The Force saw fit to make bonded pairs non-existent.”

Catra’s tone was suspicious now. “And yet there are no records of this in our histories, to our knowledge.”

Saritas huffed impatiently. “Of course not. How easily events are erased. Libraries were burned, temples and monasteries razed. New generations taught that shapeshifters were creatures of the Dark, to be feared and hated. Decades pass, then centuries, and the truth is forever lost.”

Hael’s features were stony. “This is insane.”

Lematin chuckled darkly. “I told you that’s what they would think,” he said softly.

“Matin,” Saritas growled at him over her shoulder. She turned her gaze to Kylo. “Your grandfather offered us new hope. The first Force-bonded pair in almost a millennium.”

“And then he fell to the Dark side and ruined it all for everyone,” Lematin said in an eerily sing-song tone, his dagger spinning on a fingertip. The dagger fell into his hand, pointed tip-first at Kylo. “Just as you now threaten to do.”

“Get out.” Saritas glowered at Lematin. They stared, locked in some invisible struggle. Eventually, he caved, shrinking from her gaze and stalking angrily out of the tent. They uneasily watched him go. Saritas looked after him, expression inscrutable.

“My brother is not entirely wrong,” she said regretfully. “Our hope of emerging from the shadows died when Anakin turned to the Dark side. Now with you two here, revolution lives again.”

Rey felt faint. “Revolution,” she repeated.

“With new Sovereigns, the Fíor Stait will rise again.” Fíor Stait. The True Republic.

The zealous shine in Saritas eyes disturbed Rey. Hael was right, they did sound insane.

“We need to go, and uh, discuss this new information,” Rey managed to squeeze out. Catra nodded vehemently behind her.

Saritas seemed entertained. “I understand. In the meantime, you should consider taking Lios. Or at least persuading them to our side.”

Rey’s head spun. Kylo’s hand formed a fist around her fingers. “You’re telling us to _attack_ a city of the Republic while the First Order searches for us day and night.” He gave one violent shake of his head. “We’re leaving now.”

“Don’t be so ready to write it off, there would be more than one willing ear among the Lios officials. They’re terrified. You could offer them an alternative to the crumbling Republic.”

“There is no _we_ for them to join,” Kylo threw over his shoulder as he pulled Rey from the room. Catra and Hael were close on their heels. They practically jogged through the field of tents towards the forest, now free of fog. At the second to last row, Lematin appeared from seemingly nowhere, jumping in front of Kylo and Rey with a lumpy package under one arm. Kylo swept his lightsaber up.

Lematin threw up his hands. “I’m sorry for my anger,” he said to Kylo in a decidedly unforgiving tone. “But I must give you something before you leave.” He thrust the package at Rey, who fumbled to catch it before it fell. The hard edges of a box pressed against her fingers from beneath layers of scratchy fabric. Lematin scanned behind them worriedly before ducking his head down. “If Sarit knows I gave this to you, she will certainly kill me this time,” he told them with a gleeful laugh. His face fell grave. “But you have to know. You can trust my sister, but she is manipulative. Still, we have the same goals.”

“I’m sure this will be very _informative,_ ” Kylo thanked Lematin with a mocking tone. Matin simply dipped his head with an impish smile.

“Long live the Fíor,” he whispered after them as they left, chased with a maniacal giggle. Rey looked over her shoulder at him, but he was already gone.

“That man is unhinged,” Hael declared.

“Maybe,” Rey mused as she turned the small package over in her hands.

When they reached the camp, Rey and Kylo bee-lined for their tent, both eager to talk away from the scared and scrutinizing attention of their Knights. “Catra can tell them what happened,” Kylo said with a dismissive wave.

Rey was already crossed-legged on the floor, unwinding the fabric from the package, and Kylo followed suit, their knees touching. Under the fabric was a simple wooden box, with no obvious locks or latches, but Rey couldn’t get it open. Her fingers grappled against the nearly seamless lid as she tried to yank the lid off. Kylo patiently peeled her fingers from the box. “Stop. Feel. Reach out with your mind and feel the box.”

Rey ran her fingers gently over the wood to focus on the object. “A Force lock! Like that cell you put me in,” she said with a wry smile.

Kylo frowned. “Yes, like that. This should be simple enough for you to undo considering what you did to that door.” He smirked. “Try to untangle it instead of destroying it.”

Her eyes fluttered shut as she felt out the intricacies of the lock. Kylo leaned forward, mesmerized by the sight of her face relaxing piece by piece as she reached for the Force. Her forehead smoothed, her lips softened, and her breathing grew soft and slow. He itched to reach out and trace the line of her cheekbone with his thumb.

The box clicked and Rey’s eyes flew open, startled to find him so close. Her heart lurched, and Kylo heard it. He smirked again and her cheeks heated. He didn’t even try to hide his disappointment from her as she turned her attention back to the box. Nestled inside was yet another package wound with cloth. Rey hurriedly removed this layer to reveal a small stack of papers, loosely bound with hand-stitched binding. Kylo reached out to finger one of the corners. “Animal parchment.”

Rey realized the cramped but neat lettering across the pages was actually handwriting. “It’s written in some archaic dialect of Basic. It must be so old,” she remarked, reverently turning it in her hands. As she held up the small volume, a paper fell out from between two pages. Kylo lifted it up, fluttering it in the air. “This is actually paper. The ink is fading. Newer probably, but still old.”

Kylo read it aloud.

_Ritas,_

_I found this buried in a box of half-destroyed documents from an academy which burned down during the shifter massacre. It looks like a journal, or a letter, perhaps to an apprentice or student. It begins mid-entry. I don’t know who the author is, but he seemed to know you. I thought it would be of interest to you._

Kylo stopped and turned the page over. “That’s it, the letter is unsigned.”

“Ritas must be Saritas,” Rey said.

Kylo gestured to Rey. “Read it.”

She cleared her throat and took a deep breath. She stumbled over the first several lines, gradually acclimating to the unfamiliar spelling and lettering.

_The Sovereign pair is a king and queen, or two of each. Force-bonded at birth, they will always find each other, even if it takes years. Acceptance of the bond holds great power for them both, but not all bonds are equal. Some are merely a tethering together. Others, the blinding union of two souls. Family or sibling bonds are strong, but incredibly rare, with only two known instances in the last two thousand years._

Rey paused, cheeks staining pink.

_Lovers are always the strongest, perhaps because the connection of love has its own kind of power. Even with the deepest of bonds, one in the pair will always lean towards the Light and one towards the Dark. This struggle represents the balance of the Force, although one or both may always fall to the Dark side. While painful and devastating to the other, the fallen will always return, and equilibrium reestablished, even if it takes decades. Bonds may break. Death – obviously, but one or both in the pair can choose to voluntarily break a bond. It’s disorienting to both, but especially to the individual who did not choose to break it. It is incredibly difficult, almost impossible. It takes either great strength of will or a traumatic and motivating event._

_(If a bond is broken, can it be reformed? A question no scholar has ever answered)_

_This system holds inherent instability. The volatility of it threatens the peace of our nation. The rise of each Sovereign pair can be tense and tumultuous for the country. Many speak of a better way…where the people elect rulers instead of depending on the Force. The Faithful find this concept blasphemous and dangerous, but I can see the wisdom in it._

_\---------------------------------------------------------_

_Tension between the Faithful and the Reformers, as they now call themselves, is growing. Our current Sovereigns only exacerbate it. There are whispers of a super-weapon, forged in secret. Druids have been moving into the capital in uncommon numbers, and many go missing with little to no explanation. I’m certain their Druid Consult, Snoke, is responsible for his. His greed for power grows daily and already most fear him too much to raise objections. Even Ritas, his own sister, continues to hold back. She has always doted on him. A spoiled child with such power will always become a tyrant. I always depended on Ritas as the last line of defense, but my confidence in her is waning. After the rapid deaths of her three children, she is rarely seen. I haven’t spoken to her in almost a year._

Rey’s eyes flew from the page. Kylo gripped her knee as they stared at each other, barely breathing. “Saritas is Snoke’s sister. Rey’s stomach turned into a mass of knots and she thought she was going to be sick. She took a breath to continue, tripping over the first few words as Kylo’s grip turned into a soothing stroke along her thigh.

_Yesterday, I found a hastily scrawled message stuffed under my study door. The note read “Snoke turns innocence into abomination. Come to the northernmost edge of the Crystal Basin when the new moon rises.” The Crystal Basin is far outside city limits, and completely deserted since the mines dried up. I feel uneasy, but my curiosity has already made up my mind for me._

_\---------------------------------------------------------_

_I scarcely know where to begin. My hands shake. The images are burned into my mind and I see them when I close my eyes. The taste of my own sick still lingers in my mouth._

_When I arrived to the Basin, Ritas, to my shock, was already waiting. She was just as surprised to see me. I almost didn’t recognize her, she looks so much older and more tired. Her eyes become hollows, beneath them and within them._

_We compared messages – they were almost identical. The area was empty except for a stark, squat building at the lowest point of the basin, nearly hidden from sight unless you were right on the highest point of the valley. A few sickly lights flickered from within. A child’s scream pierced the silence, and we raced down the hillside without a word. At the last moment, Ritas threw me to the ground. I could feel the terrified throb of her heart against my back. Her deep cloaking spell fell over us. She nudged me up, pointing to a tall, hooded figure that approached. His energy was unmistakable. Snoke. Her face displayed her ignorance. We crept into the building after him. Ritas undid the lock in a second, I suspect she was the one who taught him how to build them in the first place._

_Then, we entered hell._

_Rows of cramped, filthy cells filled the building, each containing one to three children. They watched us silently with keen, unblinking eyes. Their unnatural paleness glimmered even in the moonless night. Ritas’ face streamed with tears before we even made it to the second row. I have minimal druidic powers, being only an Energy-sensitive, but that was all I needed to understand what had happened. Innocence into abomination. Their life-Force had been drained and replaced with something cold and hard, as eternal as diamonds. Their energy did not flow and move as it ought to. The silence of their energies was a yawning black hole. Immortal children, forever tied to the Earth. I cannot fathom the excruciating pain of such a process. I do not want to._

_Ritas heard something I could not and flew through the rows to a particular cell near the back. A boy stood next to the bars, small hands wrapped around their cold, rusted surface, enormous night eyes staring out at us. Ritas could not silence herself now as strangled sobs ripped from her chest._

_“Mama, I’m all right.” The boy cradled her face with his hands, attempting to wipe away her tears. I recognized the boy. Branwen, her eldest son, dead for three years. He would be 12? 13? now. Ritas strained at the bars like she could rip them from the foundation with her bare hands._

_“What has he done to you? Are Lilith and Eddie here?”_

_Branwen nodded to her, pointing several rows down. “We are all here. We are...alive.”_

_“What did he do to you?” She repeated, her words growing dangerously loud._

_Branwen backed a step away from the bars, silent._

_“Who are the others?”_

_“No one,” he answered after a moment, then reconsidered. “My brothers and sisters. We do not belong to anyone anymore.”_

_“You can’t stay,” Branwen insisted, panicked. “He’ll be back soon.”_

_“Snoke?” My voice sounded alien to me. Branwen nodded. Ritas’ rage, burning since we entered the prison, had become an almost tangible thing. I could taste her energy in my mouth, metallic and caustic, and painful to look at. I shook her arm. “We can’t stay.”_

_She wouldn’t let go. She promised Branwen again and again that she would be back. He nodded. “I know.”_

Rey broke off, choking back tears. “I can’t,” she gasped. She pictured Branwen in her mind and the crow children. Who knows how long they had been alive, wandering the Earth, unable to grow up or escape. She shoved the journal at Kylo, who took it gently from her. His own face was drawn and ghostly white. He curled one hand against her jawline and rested her forehead against his. Her skin crawled at his touch. He had trained with Snoke, served Snoke. He was still connected to Snoke. But she knew from the horror in his eyes that even he could not imagine his former Alpha was capable of this kind of evil.

After a few silent minutes, Kylo pulled his hand away and picked up where Rey left off.

_I practically pulled her out and up the hill. Once at the top, she collapsed, gasping. “My children. My own children. I’ll kill him. I will rip him apart one layer at a time. And if our Sovereigns know of this, I will kill them too.”_

_In that moment, I did not doubt that she could do it. She grabbed my hand with painful force. “Swear to me you will not tell anyone. Swear to me!”_

_I swore to her to keep this a secret while she planned Snoke’s downfall. But it was a lie. I can’t shake the feeling of those black eyes on mine. Snoke is too powerful, she can’t destroy him by herself. Especially if he has created this rumored weapon. In my panic, I forgot to ask Ritas what she knew about it._

_The people must know about Snoke. He can’t destroy an entire nation. Even the Faithful will not stand for this. I will contact Lematin. He’s at the front of the Reformer movement. He will know what to do. He has no love for his older brother. The people love him. He will know what to do._

_\---------------------------------------------------------_

_I’m no longer confident telling Lematin was the right choice. His hatred for Snoke drives him to rash decisions. He speaks of violence. Tonight, he holds a rally. He will tell them the truth and urge them to fight against Snoke. Perhaps against our Sovereigns. I pester him endlessly about making sure they have a chance to turn their backs on their Consult. He agrees, but I think only to silence me. His distaste for shifters borders on prejudice. I cannot fault him. He has the Force-sensitivity of a rock. He only alludes to it, but I know Snoke was cruel to him growing up and his adoring sister always turned a blind eye._

_\---------------------------------------------------------_

_The truth is out. The sun rose on a city with no more secrets. The streets are in turmoil, men and women prepare to march against the Sovereigns and demand Snoke’s head. They are a powerful pair, but I think even they could not subdue Snoke…_

_I learned hours ago that he has constructed a weapon. He calls it the _Claiohm Solais _. The Sword of Light. What a name for something created by such evil. It can only be used by a Sovereign pair, which confounds me, and keeps us from guessing at its true purpose or shape. We do not even know if it is an actual sword, some kind of lightsaber, or something else entirely. It is only useful to him if he has complete control of the Sovereigns. We can only wait._

_\---------------------------------------------------------_

_Snoke is vanquished._

_The citizens marched on the capitol. It seems Snoke had the King under his thumb, but not the Queen. She broke from their bond to bring us the Claiohm. Already injured and bleeding when she appeared at our headquarters, her heart gave out shortly after. I cannot imagine the immense strength and bravery it takes to voluntarily destroy a Force bond._

_Without his Queen, the King was immediately useless. The pain would render him unable to maintain coherent thoughts, much less fight. Druids swarmed the capitol buildings, surrounding Snoke. They wove an immense barrier, and then lit the entire grounds on fire. I weep for the hundreds of innocent souls lost in the blaze, but they died for freedom and justice. Or so I tell myself. After the fire raged for two days, Ritas and Lematin entered the ruins to search for Snoke. They found his body, smoldering and ravaged. In the end, even his great and terrible power could not protect him forever from the forces of the natural world. Ritas tells me he was dead when they found him. I do not know what they did with the body._

_The immortal children were freed and immediately disappeared. Caged creatures run the fastest._

_Druids gather to discuss what to do with the weapon. The Sovereign system has been abolished, but I know many of the Faithful would kill to get their hands on the Claiohm_ _until the rise of the next Sovereigns. Those of us in the inner circle are designing a convoluted set of instructions to hide the weapon because we cannot figure out how to destroy it. Myself and another have been charged with drawing and encoding the physical instructions for the druids who will carry the weapon. When they reach their destination and hide the weapon, they will destroy their instructions and the map and take their lives. When I finish my work, this too will be my fate._

_\---------------------------------------------------------_

_On the eve after sending out the conclave of druids with the weapon and instructions and map, terrible news reaches us. A druid turned traitor has escaped with the map. Then someone came to us claiming a powerful and hideously disfigured druid boarded a ship and disappeared across the Great Ocean. A nightmare none of us could have imagined._

Kylo stopped short. “It ends there.”

They both released shaky breaths. Their silence stretched.

“We still don’t know what it does,” Rey remarked. “The Claiohm Solais.

“We have to find it before Snoke does.” Kylo’s jaw twitched.

Rey stared. “That means working with the Resist – the Republic.”

Kylo fiddled with the edge of her cloak. “I know.”

Her eyes softened. She set down the journal and reached for his other hand, trying not to relish the touch of his bare skin against hers, not remembering when he removed his gloves.

“Why do you always wear gloves?” She asked softly, still looking at their twined fingers.

Kylo ran a self-conscious hand down the back of his head, thinking about the still uncomfortable weightlessness of his missing helmet. His fingers felt naked without the thick layer of leather protecting them.

“Habit,” he answered lamely. “We should go to Lios,” he said, abruptly changing the topic. “But because we need supplies.”

Rey bit her lip. “I think we should try to contact the city officials.”

Kylo grit his jaw again. “I don’t think we should do anything Saritas told us to.”

Rey frowned but didn’t push the topic. Kylo stood up and offered her a hand. She shook her head. “I’ll meet you outside. I want to hide this somewhere safe.”

Kylo nodded. She barely waited for his last boot to disappear through the tent door before digging into her pouch. A messenger never went anywhere without some paper and graphite. The sheet she pulled out was wrinkled, creased, and a little damp, but it would have to do. She scribbled a note on the paper.

 _The True Republic rises._ _Join us, or be enslaved by the First Order. Leave word with the crow children._

_\- Your Sovereign Queen._

Rey choked back a strangled laugh and grimaced. Now she sounded insane too.

* * *

Kylo and Rey traveled to the city with two other Knights. They agreed to split into two groups, and return to camp separately as soon as they’d purchased the supplies they needed. A soft rain began as they left, melting the rest of the snow and turning the ground into an icy mire. Despite the weather, the city teemed. Rey hadn’t been to Lios in a long time and it had grown significantly since then. She scanned their surroundings again and again, looking for a way to get her cryptic note into the right hands. The city official center was on the other side of the market, there was no way for Rey to surreptitiously make it there and back without Kylo noticing. She realized his hands were bare - he'd left his gloves behind. She smiled to herself.

They moved slowly through the throng as the drizzle turned into a steady pitter-patter. Cold droplets found their way beneath hoods and up sleeves, trailing chilling paths that left Kylo shivering. After they purchased some dried goods and stuffed them into their bags, Rey’s gaze snagged on something over his shoulder and she halted. He followed her unfocused stare to a ruffled mess of papers nailed to a post. Wanted notices, sketches of scowling criminal faces or the smirk of an over-confident outlaw, meager bounties printed beneath each. But that’s not what Rey was looking at. On top of the papers was a fresh flier – hand-written instead of printed – with two smiling faces sketched in the center. Even though the ink was already blurred from the weather, the images remained distinct. An older man with two days of scruff, his arm slung around the jutting shoulders of a young boy. Kylo froze. Though they were shredded and bloody when he had seen them, Kylo still recognized those faces.

A petite woman in a rough woolen shawl saw them looking, and sprang into their path, eclipsing their view of the poster. _“_ Have you seen my husband and son?” Her clasped hands hovered at her throat, knuckles growing white.

Kylo swallowed, scrambling for a thought. “They’re yours?” He titled his head towards the sign.

“Yes. They were traveling for business – should have been back by now. There’s talk of wolves in the woods.” Her voice dropped to the barest of whispers, strained with the implications of the idea. “ _Loup garou.”_

The phrase drew Rey’s attention to the woman for the first time, the words breaking through her panic-laced thoughts. The woman’s eyes came into focus. Green. Their conversation hit her all at once and her breath hitched as realization caught up to her. Kylo instinctively brought his arm to her shoulders.

The woman didn’t notice, totally consumed by the prospect of receiving news about her family. Rey trembled, and Kylo felt the bond rumble with her. The edges of her warped and shifted so slightly Kylo was sure no one else could have noticed. Rey’s skin turned just a hint brighter. His fingers curled around her arm and he stepped past the woman, pulling Rey with him.

“We don’t know anything, I’m sorry,” he told the woman as he dragged Rey away. The woman stared at their retreat, hands still clasped. Rey wrenched around in Kylo’s grasp, searching out the woman’s gaze through the market. “They’re not coming back,” she cried out. Kylo quickened their pace. She didn’t see the woman’s face crumple at her words.

He wove through the crowd, heading directly for the closest buildings, tall stacks of houses crammed together, and slipped into a narrow alley. Rey’s breaths were coming fast and hard, her skin barely lighting the darkness of the brick walls on either side. Kylo pulled her through a maze until he found an abandoned building. He practically kicked down the door, pushing her inside and then moving some crumbling wooden crates in front of it.

He shoved Rey against a wall, hands on her shoulders.

“My fault,” Rey whispered, eyes lowered. He shook her but she slumped back, eyes stuck to the ground. He grasped her chin in one hand and tipped her head back. Her gaze went right through him, staring off into nothing. He grabbed at their bond but she slipped farther and farther away from him, shimmering and twisting in his sight. His fear spiked. She was going to turn right in the city. He shook her again. “Rey! Rey! Stop, listen to me, please.” He thought back to the First Order base, the first time he felt her turning, the tremble of their bond, and the way he pulled at her before he fully understood how it worked. He still didn’t understand how it worked. He failed in the woods to bring her back and he was going to fail again.

The heat of their skin filled the barest space between them and Rey’s gaze locked onto his – Kylo’s dark eyes the last anchor she had. His skin promised her ignorance. She could lose herself in the angles of his limbs under her hands, she could taste relief on his tongue, she could _forget._

His lips were still there, the closest they’d ever been. She grabbed the front of his tunic with both hands, bunching the rough fabric inside her fists, and pulled her down to him.

Kylo’s lips were cold, drawn tight with shock. A shiver coursed through him, and then he slipped his hands around her waist, fitting her tight to his body, and his mouth parted above hers. They collided and their panic melted and disappeared as their lips moved together, transforming into a fierce hunger. He tasted like a melted winter sky when she slipped her tongue into his mouth. Her hands spread across him, her burning touch alighting his skin even through his thick clothing. The bond shuddered under the sudden rush, then expanded, dragging their minds into each other. Her heart drummed a frenzied rhythm against his ribs, her frame aching from his crushing grasp. She wove fingers through his hair and pulled him impossibly closer. She wanted more. Their minds danced together, colors and sounds swirling. As she stretched into him, her mind brushed against a barrier, sharp and stinging. She could almost see the memories piled against it on the other side, pulsing with violence, fury, and cutting pain. Voices echoed, mixed with animalistic snarls, accompanied by a scent. It was familiar. An old memory of her own struggled to surface. The tang of fresh blood bloomed in her mouth. The knowledge sliced into her like a freshly honed knife. This was Kylo Ren. Her mind recoiled like a hand from a flame.

Rey ripped away from him and she shoved him off her. They stared at each other, breaths counting identical ragged beats. The liquid depths his eyes reflected her own turmoil. Her mind stung where she stumbled across something he didn’t want her to know. But still her skin sang his name. He reached for her and she pulled him close again.

He was blinding. His body curled around her, new energy pouring from him like he’d always been ready for this very second. Not the slightest pause, no hesitation. His lips crushed hers, pressing her mouth open and diving into her.

He knotted her hair around his fingers, setting her scalp tingling. His hands traveled down her neck, over her shoulders. They ripped off each other’s clothing in a frenzied duet. Her fingers remembered the fastest way to the clasps on his clothes and he slipped her shirt off like it was immaterial. His cool skin, now flush against her warmth, was like a summer thunderstorm. They collided and electricity grew.

Rey pulled off his underwear and almost gasped as his large cock sprang forward. She envisioned him slamming it into her, stretching her as full as she could stand and her toes curled with anticipation. But first he wanted something else.

His lips traveled over her jaw and down her silky neck, leaving behind biting kisses that left a trail of red crescent marks. Rey’s tiny gasps every time his teeth caught on her skin drove his heart to beat faster and faster. She arched into his hands as his mouth found her breasts, sucking and biting against the perfect pink buds. Rey moaned, bucking her hips towards him. He dropped to his knees and sunk his hands around the curve of her ass, dragging her hips towards him. Rey’s cheeks burned and she laced her hands through his thick hair, holding her breath, waiting for the moment he slipped his tongue over her clit.

Kylo wanted to wander, he wanted to drag his fingertips over every inch of her skin. But the tiny sounds she made as his mouth moved lower and lower urged him on. He could think of nothing else than listening to her whimpers grow.

He heard her holding her breath as he slid one hand down the lithe curve of her thigh, tightening his fingers to feel the strength in her body. She was quivering, and he felt it all the way down his arm. He hooked his hand behind her knee and lifted it up, resting her shin on his shoulder, exposing her to his eager mouth, eliciting a gasp from her as she settled her weight against him. Her dark curls tickled his nose. She smelled tangy and sweet. He wanted to tease her, to lick his way around her folds until she begged. Later, he promised himself. His cock throbbed. He needed to feel her. He swept the length of his tongue from her slit to her clit and Rey’s whole body shuddered. His tongue stroked tight circles around her clit, softly at first. Rey’s fingers in his hair tightened, yanking his mouth against her. He smiled against her hot center, his skin alighting at the way she wordlessly begged for him.

Rey could think of nothing else but the unbearable flood of ecstasy building inside her. She brushed against the bond and found it burning white-hot. Every whimper and groan she let out sent a wave of feverish desire over them both.

“Don’t stop, don’t stop,” she pled, her voice breathless. The circles turned rougher, faster. Rey moaned, her nails digging into his scalp. He slipped one finger forward, gliding it into her slit, and curled it against her walls. He thrust another finger into her and she keened, shaking, as he pumped his fingers. His tongue flicked, demanding she come.

“Kylo,” she gasped, his name disappearing into a wail. Her body shuddered and vibrated as she came against his mouth. The room spun. Still lightheaded, he pulled away from her and she started to protest. But he grabbed her ass again, lifting her up without hesitation and slamming her hips against his. The length of his cock pressed against her dripping slit and she rocked her hips against its hardness, locking her heels behind his back to get closer.

Rey’s lips moved up his neck and she rocked her hips against him again, sending dizzying thrills through him. He almost dropped her on the floor right there and took her. He made it three more steps, slamming her back up against the wall.

“Kylo,” she whispered again, feeling the words on his skin as much as he heard them. “Please,” she begged, grinding against his cock again. He staggered at the sound of her pleading for him. Her hand was already around his shaft, squeezing and tugging from base to head, slippery with her own desire. She slid the head over her clit, her mouth falling open against his shoulder, biting at the pale skin along his collarbone. Then she thrust him inside her, burying his cock in her pulsing cunt.

They moaned in unison, her cries rising above his as he gripped her thighs and plunged into her over and over. He filled her to the brink of pain, setting every nerve in her body screaming.

“Harder,” she purred in his ear. He slammed into her, rocking his hips up with every push. His building euphoria spilled into her mind, hot and sticky, gushing into the seams between her thoughts. Their lips brushed with every push into each other. She found his gaze, her eyes dark and heavy-lidded with pleasure. The bond crackled and thundered with their colliding minds as they rose closer and closer to climax.

Rey dug her fingernails into the back of his neck and cried out as he gave one last deep thrust. It pushed them both over the edge and with a heavy shudder, they crested together. They slumped against each other, gasping for air. Kylo kept her pressed against his frame, as if he could keep her there forever.

Rey’s head fell back against the wall and the rotting wood grain of the sagging support beams above them fell into focus. The cold air rushed over her skin, yanking her back to reality. Her mind twisted, scrambling to untangle from his and escape. She pushed him away and jumped down, fingers scraping over the rough brick at her back. Their chests heaved as they faced each other. Kylo stared, sharp questions aching in his eyes. Rey’s heart turned over. She used him. She used him to forget and she loved every second of it. Her arms tingled, telling her to draw him back to her, settle in the feel of his heart against hers.

Instead she reached for her clothes, yanking them on in seconds, barely giving herself time to finish putting on her boots before she shoved the pile of crates out the way and threw open the door. Kylo stood in the same place, stunned. She looked over her shoulder, her gaze unfathomable. He couldn’t form words.

Her named hovered on his lips. She turned away, the whispered tremor of his voice following her as she raced through the drunken labyrinth of brick walls stained dark with rain. The sound reverberated against her skull as she entered the market. She fixed her mind on reaching the city official center and finding some place to leave her note. The murmur of Kylo calling after her followed her all the way out of the city and back to camp, the memory of his broken gaze a ghostly knife in her back.

* * *

 

“Where’s Kylo?” Catra’s smoke-tinged voice interrupted her roiling thoughts.

Rey barely glanced over her shoulder. “I don’t know.” It was a lie. She could feel him moving their direction. She pulled away from the sensation. “Shouldn’t you be able to feel him or something?” Her question was flat and Catra winced at the uncharacteristic bitterness.

“He’s heavily shielded.” Catra leaned against the wide boulder where Rey crouched and folded her arms. “What happened in Lios?”

Rey gritted her jaw and refused to answer. She tossed a pebble down the sheer bluff at the base of the boulder and focused on the clatter as it skidded into the tiny stream at the bottom of a shallow canyon. She was far from camp, and she knew it was dangerous, but she didn’t care at the moment.

Catra sighed heavily, staring into the foggy distance. “Kylo is…complicated.”

Rey snorted derisively.

“And I know you are as well. I can’t pretend to understand what you’re going through.”

“No, you can’t,” Rey snapped. She roiled with anger. At herself, at Kylo. And at her longing. Every inch of her that deplored her actions also screamed for her to run back to Lios, find Kylo, and throw herself into his arms. Her chest was a fractured mess and the chaos grated at her.

Catra paused before slowly continuing, perhaps sensing her conflict. “I understand him more than most.”

Rey threw an entire handful of pebbles at once. “He’s a monster. He’s a victim. He’s your Alpha. I can feel all of it in him.  And he’s full of secrets. And the rest of the Knights know them all.”

Catra tilted her head. “Not all. Only a few.”

“Like you. Why is that?”

“I was with the First Order long before he joined. Kylo is like a little brother to me.”

Rey laughed darkly at the idea. “It’s hard to imagine him being okay with that.”

Catra laughed along quietly. “He fought it for a long time, but I knew he needed it.” Her face settled into resentful lines. “Rhys and I had been ‘recruited’ by Snoke when we were both young. Born werewolves, and siblings? Too powerful to pass up. I’ve never stopped hating him.”

Rey’s brows knitted. “I don’t understand how so many of you fought for the First Order even though you hated it.”

Catra chuckled, a humorless and acidic sound. “The First Order doesn’t give you any choice. Join or die. The Republic isn’t much better. With the Resistance on the loose, living in the Republic just meant forever looking over your shoulder, waiting for an arrow in your back. I served, but always waiting for something better. As the years passed and more shifters joined our forces, the hope we would find a way out grew weaker. Then Kylo came along.” A small smile tugged at her lips. “He was just a skinny, angry boy back then, with more power than he knew what to do with.” Her smile widened. “And such a brat. When he wasn’t stomping around with solemn arrogance, he was smashing things out of anger.”

Rey couldn’t help smiling at the image. Catra’s voice grew serious. “As much as he tries to hide them, Kylo is full of scars. There was a quiet kindness to him that came out in the most secret of times. Rescuing an injured animal, comforting a shifter who’d lost their best friend. Every kind act was met with Snoke’s abuse and he learned to bury it. I couldn’t help feeling protective of him. Even knowing he was pulled between the Dark and the Light, Snoke lured him to the First Order with promises of revenge and power, but Kylo stayed because Snoke told him about the bond. His ‘destiny.’ You, before he even knew it was you. Kylo was obsessed.”

Rey stilled. The concept still unnerved her. “I think that whole thing is kind of creepy.”

Catra laughed, the sound ringing off the trees far below them. “Yes, I can understand that. At first I worried about what it meant when Snoke got his hands on you. With two powerful, bonded shifters working for him, there was no way the Republic could defeat the First Order. But when Kylo finally found you, he didn’t tell Snoke. He only told me and then I understood why. A Vivant, daughter of _the_ werewolf hunters. That’s when I knew Snoke didn’t stand a chance. I watched Kylo search for you and dream of you for years and years. There was no way you would ever fall to the Dark side. And there is too much Light in Kylo for him to do the same, no matter how hard he tries. Snoke’s plan would fail.”

“Still creepy,” Rey responded, mulling over the slew of new information.

“You were wrong you know,” Catra said vaguely. Rey waited for her to finish. “About us being here because we have no choice. You and Kylo are the first semblance of choice any of us have had in a long time.”

Rey accepted her words quietly, not entirely sure she agreed with them. She felt like she had no choice. But she remember the hope in Kylo’s eyes when she told him to leave the First Order and come with her. He had made a choice to turn his back on his Alpha and follow her.

“Catra? There’s something you should see.” Rey reached beneath her cloak and tunic, pulling out the bunch of parchments she’d tucked into her breast wrap, something she didn’t normally wear. She had wanted to keep the pages close. Catra’s eyes were filled with questions as Rey handed it over to her. “This is what Lemantin gave to me on the way out. Part of me still can’t wrap my mind around it.” She motioned for Catra to read it.

She carefully studied Catra’s face as her eyes moved down each page and grew wider with every line. By the end, her jaw hung open.

“I know,” Rey said quietly.

“What does Kylo think about this?”

“That we shouldn’t trust Saritas at all, or take any of her advice.”

“But you don’t agree with that.”

Rey turned a pebble over in her hands, running her fingers along the grainy layers of stone, each layer laid down over eons, and now an ancient thing resting in her hands. “I think Saritas has seen centuries more than us, and probably hates Snoke more than anyone. We shouldn’t disregard everything she says.”

“Those banners they had,” Catra mused.

Rey sighed. “How could they know? They obviously have knowledge we don’t. And we’re going to need all the information we can get.”

Catra’s eyes grew distant for a moment. “Kylo’s back,” she told Rey.

Rey took a deep breath and let it out in a rush. “I need to talk to him.”

They walked back to camp in companionable silence. Someone was roasting hares over a fire but Rey’s nerves found the scent unappealing. Catra reached out to squeeze her hand before Rey turned towards Kylo, standing in a cluster of Knights. “Trust in the Force, Rey,” she reminded her as Rey walked away. She smiled gratefully at Catra.

Rey met Kylo’s gaze across the camp. She nodded her head towards their tent, not waiting for him to respond.

Kylo delayed, to Rey’s impatience. Right as she was about to storm out the tent to find him, he appeared, carrying two spits with chunks of meat on them. He held one out to her and she shook her head. “Not hungry.”

His mouth narrowed. “You need to eat.” They stared at each other until Rey sighed, reaching for the food. She didn’t feel like fighting. Kylo sat down across from her, keeping his distance. They ate in uneasy silence. Rey wiped her mouth with her sleeve and waited for him to finish.

“Rey, about Lios – “

She cut him off. Her eyes shimmered with unshed tears, their presence surprising her. “I’m using you.”

Kylo swallowed. “Maybe. But that’s not all of it. I can feel it.” He scooted towards her, grazing two fingers down her forearm. “I can feel you.” He moved closer again, his hand closing around her wrist. “I know you.”

His voice was low and husky, rumbling through her chest. She made the mistake of looking into his eyes. She crumbled, leaning into his arms. He pressed her to him, tucking her beneath his chin and stroking her hair. She hated his touch. She hated how much she craved it.

Rey held the words in as long as she could before they spilled out. “None of this would happen if it weren’t for our bond.”

“You can’t know that.” His words were tinted with desperation.

She wanted to disagree, remind him that they were from opposite worlds that never would have intersected. But what if that wasn’t true?

“Kylo, what would you do if we weren’t here?”

She could feel his frown against her temple. “What do you mean?”

“If you’d never joined the First Order. If we both lived normal lives.”

He chuckled. “I can barely imagine it.” After a moment, he continued. “I would be a Healer.”

“Doctor Ren,” she said with a small laugh.

“Yes,” he chuckled. “I’d still be Ben Solo.” One hand curled tighter in her hair. “What would you do?”

Rey thought for a minute. “I imagine my parents had never left. I would probably still be hunting shape-shifters with them. Or doing whatever the Resistance is doing right now.”

“You don’t think as the only shapeshifters in the Resistance we still wouldn’t have found each other?”

She thought of the softness of his touch when he stitched up her arm, the way the morning sun lit up his eyes. Moments from a different life.

“Maybe we would have,” she admitted. Some of her tension dissipated with her words.

“I would be a different person,” Kylo continued, his voice thick with regret, the feeling coloring their bond. “I would have made different choices.” Her chest tightened with his sadness. She pulled away to look into his eyes, face sincere.

“I believe you would have.”

Kylo let out a tiny breath and finished her words with a kiss. She kissed him back, fully aware she wasn’t fighting against dark thoughts. She was simply _there._ And when he slipped her shirt over her head and she pulled off his tunic, she was still there. She met his mind, fully open. It terrified her. He soothed her with gentle hands down the curves of her waist, deepening their kiss. He leaned her back against their bed rolls, and she sighed into his mouth, the sound relief and the last of her resistance, all in one.

Rey leaned into his presence, pulling him deep as he entered her. Her head fell back in silent pleasure, her eyes still on his. Their bodies moved against each other in tandem, the rhythm newly familiar to both. She didn’t feel alone, she realized. And she knew he didn’t either.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! After literally months. Thanks to the faithful readers who don't give up on me :)


	28. Chapter 28

Rey plopped down on a fallen tree and leaned against her knees, rubbing her tired eyes. They decided to come out and tell the Knights everything they knew. She didn’t want any secrets.

She already regretted it. The revelations turned to arguments. Hael and Calla were furious over Saritas. Áinee and Ellis played moderators, trying to get everyone to stop interrupting each other and calm down. Catra wanted to cooperate with Saritas and the rest. Rhys mostly agreed with his sister. Dax, as usual, didn’t have much to say. Zuri was undecided. No one wanted to work with the Resistance.

Rey kept close to Kylo’s feelings throughout. She expected him to snap and throw someone against a tree within the first few minutes. An hour later and no fights had broken out. Rey suspected it had something to do with that morning. She’d woken before him, content to just lay still in the curl of his arms, when his breath stuttered as he jolted awake and every part of him was fear and alertness before he realized where he was. She pretended to sleep as he ran a soft hand down her bare shoulder and arm, his terror relaxing into a hesitant honeyed glow. She wondered what kind of life caused one to wake up in fear every morning.

Hael’s angry roar brought Rey back to the present. He stormed off, growling to himself. Kylo shot Rey a look and she shook her head. _We should have just stayed in our tent,_ she thought with a tired smile. Kylo agreed with her and she shivered. They slipped in and out of each other’s minds without warning. Rey didn’t know what to think about having her thoughts so exposed.

Beating wings rustled behind her and Branwen settled on her shoulder.

 _Your little stunt in Lios ruffled quite a few feathers,_ Branwen told her with a short tone. Her face burned as she thought of her and Kylo’s frenzied union in the abandoned building.

 _But we did make communication with two city officials,_ he continued, and Rey realized he was referring to the note she left pinned in the door of a main office. _They’re amenable to a change in power._

Rey almost scoffed. _Amenable to a change in power. Branwen,_ w _e’re talking about a coup. An invasion. Now what?_

_You take Lios._

Branwen’s head tilted as he eyed the shouting Knights, First Order tents, and the trampled and muddy ground of their camp. _You can’t take over by sheer force. Surprise is your only advantage right now. Infiltrate, find the remaining officials._

Rey’s mouth went dry.  _People will die_. _Human people._

His talons dug just a bit deeper into her shoulder and she winced. _This is war. People are dying right now. Your people. The First Order has enslaved them. You have to start thinking as their leader, as their queen._

She responded with a croaking laugh and then gulped. _Even thinking it feels outrageous. Two weeks ago I was no one. My biggest worry was running into bandits on the road or being caught in a storm._

 _You’ve never been no one,_ he corrected her. _You just didn’t know it yet._

He hopped on her shoulder, unfolding his wings.

_Wait! If we do attack, how do we know who’s on our side?_

_Look for the mark on their hearts,_ he responded before wheeling away.

Rey almost growled, convinced he was cryptic on purpose.

Kylo’s presence rushed into her, missing while she talked to Branwen. His distaste stung like a bitter herb on her tongue. He resented Branwen as much as he was curious about their exchange. _Your mind is walled up when he’s with you,_ he told her. The thought was bunched and tight. Their bond communication was still unpredictable and unreliable. The only thing that seemed to make it consistently work was physical contact.

_Let’s talk._

He nodded once, forcefully announcing to the Knights that they’d finish this later. He strode away from them before they could protest, offering a hand up to Rey.

They settled into their cross-legged pose from the night before. Kylo regarded their folded legs with a thoughtful smile. “This is a basic meditative pose,” he remarked.

Rey faintly smiled. “I didn’t know that. Apparently I do need a teacher.” He smirked at the irony. She shivered when her traced a finger along the sensitive skin along her wrist.

“Tell me.”

She took a breath and scooped up the memory of her conversation with Branwen, pushing it at him. He twitched as the information hit him. “What _stunt_? What did you do?”

She winced and looked away.

“Rey?”

She gave him another memory, trying to dampen the blanket of anger and disgust that laid on of top it. He flinched and she knew she’d failed. He took the memory of her letter without comment, but she could feel the way it needled him. She wanted to tell him it was herself she has been angry with, but the words stuck in her throat and swirled indistinguishable in her mind.

He rose quickly and stomped out of the tent. Rey sighed before following. Nothing was ever easy with him.

The Knights were already gathered. Rey invited Dahlia and Delta to join them but they kept their distance from the circle, with the ever-present hint of a smirk on their watchful faces.

Kylo’s emotions were violin strings pulled too tight. She felt him consider putting up a barrier just to spite her and she tried not to laugh. She perched on one of their makeshift benches, a split tree trunk propped up on rocks, and Kylo stood behind her, his presence only a black smudge in her periphery. She took a deep breath, gathering herself.

“We’re going to capture Lios,” she stated calmly. Shocked stares followed her words. “No one is going back to the First Order. No one wants to join Resistance. We have nowhere else to go.”

“Like hell,” Hael scoffed. “We can run, cross the mountains, escape to the outer rim, and disappear.”

“Snoke will find us no matter where we go,” Kylo argued, his eyes sweeping the group. “It’s only a matter of time before he sends soldiers to hunt us down.” Rey felt the chilled fear he kept from his voice.

Hael had nothing to say to that. Ellis straightened at his side. “I would rather fight. If we die, we die free.”

Áinee  and Rey’s eyes met. “Are we going to be this ‘True Republic’ that woman told you about?”

Rey and Kylo exchanged looks. “We may not trust Saritas, but the shifters and druids with her consider themselves the True Republic, and we need them. So, yes, I guess we are.” Rey didn’t remind them of the part where she and Kylo were chosen and bonded by the Force to fulfill their apparent destiny as the nation’s leaders. The Knights didn’t know what to think of it and everyone danced around that bit of information. Although they seemed resigned, several nodded in understanding.

“Three of you will go in shortly for reconnaissance. I want to move tomorrow night,” Kylo said. “I think Saritas has their tents shielded but soon enough someone will stumble through them.” A traveling town appearing out of nowhere would certainly cause a panic in the city.

Rey picked up. “There are sympathizers in the city, hopefully among the governor and their administrators, if we’re lucky.”

Kylo nodded in agreement. “Our priority is to find out where they live, the size of their standing military, where the soldiers are housed, the number of watch towers and guards they have posted along their wall, and any other information.” The destruction of the capital had put everyone on the defensive. The main gate was closed from sunset to sunrise, something they never would have done before the First Order struck.

Kylo’s attention flew to the edge of the clearing. Catra nodded to him. “Picked up a scent. Human.”

Dax and Áinee  shed their outerwear quickly, sprinting to the trees and emerging from the other side of the white haze and color as wolves. Rey almost pitied the spy.

They returned with a glowering Lematin pinned between them. Rey somehow, was not surprised.

“I want to help,” he announced, as if he’d been included in their conversation the whole time.

Rey nodded at the wolves and waved him forward. “Why?”

“My sister is content to watch for now, but I’m not. I’m tired of doing nothing.”

Kylo ushered the three of them away from the Knights as Rey’s questions piled up.

“You can help, if you answer some of our questions,” she told Lematin.

His nonchalant slump turned wary, but he nodded.

“How old are you?”

He pressed his lips together. “Technically, almost a thousand. But I haven’t exactly been around for all of it.”

She blinked, skeptical. “How did you and your sister live so long?”

His face darkened and he squinted at her with a glare. “She’s not this pure person, full of the Light. She dabbles in the Dark, too often and too much. I don’t know how it works, but she uses the Force to sustain her. She won’t explain it to anyone, even me. I think if the other druids knew who she really was, no one would have anything to do with her.”

Kylo studied the shorter man. “So what she does is dangerous.”

Lematin’s head bobbled indecisively. “Yes, probably. Nothing terrible has happened so far. That I know of anyway, and I know everything that happens in our town.”

Rey pointed a finger at his chest. “But how are _you_ alive?”

“I don’t know,” he admitted. “About ten years after the shapeshifter massacre, she put me into some kind of stasis. I woke up and found out nearly a thousand years had passed. I’ve present for only 35 years of my millennial existence.” His words leaned heavily into bitterness, every syllable coated with open resentment for his sister. “She never told me why, other than we needed ‘to wait,’ and so she preserved me for the right time as she saw fit.”

Rey pondered for a moment. Curiously, wisps of sympathy for Lematin emanated from Kylo, but he didn’t speak up. She abruptly switched subjects.

“There are only 12 of us,” Rey started. Kylo’s gaze slanted sideways at her.

“There’s 10,” he corrected.

“The twins.”

Kylo’s mouth pulled down. “They’re too young.”

“They’re young women and they’re strong and skilled.” She stared hard at Kylo, acutely aware of Lematin watching them intently.

Kylo’s face remained smooth, but his jaw ticced. “I know, but they’re too young to be in battle.”

Realization dawned on her. He wasn’t worried about them being a liability, he was just worried for their safety. He bit his lip while she studied him.

“12 people isn’t enough to take a sizeable city,” she continued. “We’re all strong, but we can’t be everywhere at once. And I want no deaths.”

Kylo scoffed. “We all want to survive.”

Rey leveled her stare on him again. “ _No_ deaths. At all. On both sides.”

Kylo set his mouth in a hard line. “You can’t be serious.”

Rey’s eyes narrowed. “We aren’t the First Order and I won’t condone needless slaughter.”

Kylo grit his teeth. “We are invading a city. This is war.”

She balled her fists. “We are not at war with this city. It’s full of scared and innocent people, including the soldiers. The misfortune of being in our way will NOT be a death sentence. No deaths.”

Lematin cleared his throat. “I could find some people. Highly skilled. But many are human.”

“That’s fine,” Rey told him. “Bring whomever, as long as they are loyal. And I don’t want your sister to know.”

Lematin cackled. “She already knows. Don’t bother trying to hide anything from her.”

Rey’s brows knit. “Have you said something to her?”

Lematin stepped closer, eyes suddenly blazing. “You do not understand,” he told her, each word sharp and tight. “She is ancient. The same blood that runs in Snoke’s veins belongs to her as well. She is more powerful than you can imagine.”

“You make it sound like she’s as strong as Snoke,” Kylo said, voice hinted with equal parts hope and alarm.

Lematin’s mouth twisted. “No, unfortunately. She’s powerful but she’s riddled with weaknesses. Her love for her children, for her family, her people, her country. And her cowardice - she always waits too long to act. Snoke has no weaknesses. He loves nothing and no one except himself.”

“Love is not weakness,” Rey murmured. Kylo flicked a glance at her.

“Do you have a couple spies we can send in with my Knights? We need a layout of the city, defenses, weak spots,” Kylo asked.

Lematin nodded. “I’ll fetch my best.”

Kylo nodded brusquely. “Dismissed.”

Rey shot a glare at him but Lematin gave a wry smile. “Already settling into your role as a Sovereign.” He mock-saluted Kylo and left.

Kylo returned to the Knights but Rey hurried after Lematin, calling after him. “I have to ask you something personal. Please don’t be offended.”

“Ask, and we’ll see if I’m offended,” he said with a crooked smile.

“How come you’re not, how come you don’t have -“  

“How come I’m a mere human and not a shapeshifter or druid?”

Rey nodded sheepishly.

“Snoke and Saritas are my half-siblings. After their mother died, their father remarried to my mother. Then came me. They never accepted my mother. When I was seven our father died.” His face turned to brittle stone. “I think Snoke killed him for ‘betraying’ their mother by remarrying. He hated me. Soon after, my mother died of the red fever. She never really recovered from my father’s death.” He gazed in the direction of the traveling town. “Saritas raised me. She protected me, in her own way. Shapeshifters and druids can be an unfriendly bunch, to a human.”

“You’re the bridge,” Rey said.

Lematin blinked at her. “What?”

“Your town also has humans, right?”

He nodded. “Probably about a fourth are human.”

“Do you think the shifters and druids would be as accepting of humans if Saritas didn’t protect and love her own human brother?”

Lematin’s face softened. “I never thought of it like that,” he said quietly.

Rey sighed. “Kylo and I are considering working with the Resistance,” she confided in him. “They have the map and we have critical information about Snoke. But they would never ever consent to work with just druids and shifters. They might not anyway, no matter how many humans are among us.”

She looked him straight in the eye. “We need you.”

He nodded, suddenly shy. “I’ll be back with my spies shortly.”

“Alright. We’ll wait.” Rey hesitated for a second and then called after him again. “I know this is not how you think rulers should be chosen. So I appreciate it all the more.”

He looked over his shoulder. “Thank you.” Genuine appreciation reflected in his eyes.  “No one’s ever told me that before. You’re going to make a good Sovereign.”

* * *

 

“Is that how you know him?” Rey asked Kylo later. “Loves no one and nothing?”

His hands wavered in the air, halting the movement of the basic glyphs he was teaching her while they waited for Lematin and their Knights talked strategies. “Snoke?”

She nodded and his eyes dropped. “He had a certain fondness for some of his Knights, for Hux. For me. But the way someone is fond of their favorite tool or weapon. I always thought I could convince him to think of me as something more, if I tried hard harder. If I was just _more._ ”

Rey’s chest ached. “It’s not _you_ ,” she told him. “You are enough.”

He didn’t answer. Ruffled brown hair and a roguish smirk filled her memories and she knew they weren’t talking about just Snoke anymore.

His eyes moved over her shoulder and she turned to see Lematin return, followed by a man and woman. In their late 20s or early 30s, they were both average height, a vaguely athletic build, with light brown hair. No distinctive features at all.

“Meet two of my best Cats,” Lematin said with relish. “Erik and Gus.”

Rey shook their hands, utterly relieved they didn’t try to bow. “Why Cats?”

Erik blinked at her. “Because we’re cats.”

Rey and Kylo shared a look. “You’re shapeshifters,” Kylo confirmed.

The woman, Gus, nodded.

“And you shift into cats.”

She nodded again.

Rey’s lips parted. “But that’s so…so…”

“Ordinary?” Erik guessed. “Have you ever seen a cat somewhere and been suspicious about why it’s there?”

She shrugged after a moment. “No, I guess not.”

Gus nodded languidly. “Cat in a tree, cat in a closet, the rafters, a cart, doesn’t matter. Doesn’t matter where, no one bothers to notice us.”

“Clever,” Kylo remarked, but he gave them a newly appreciative once-over. “You two will be with our Knights Rhys and Áinee. They obviously can’t shift in the city, but Rhys can communicate with his twin no matter where he is.”

“Clever,” Gus echoed Kylo with a smirk.

Rey and Kylo lagged behind Lematin and his Cats as they moved towards the Knights.

“We’re supposed to meet Finn tomorrow night,” she reminded him.

He chewed his lip. “Moon doesn’t even rise until at least first hour. So we’ll have hours until the high moon.”

Rey sighed. “If we do succeed, both of us leaving right after an invasion isn’t a good move. I think I should go alone.”

Kylo’s eyes widened and he sharply shook his head. “Absolutely not. We can’t split up.”

“One of us needs to stay in Lios. You know your Knights better. I know Finn better.”

He grit his teeth. “No.”

She scowled. “No? You can’t just tell me ‘no’ and expect me to obey you. You’re not my Alpha or my head Knight or whatever the hell you are to all the other Knights.”

He glowered at her, his words sharp and hard. “It is not safe.”

She growled in frustration, throwing up her hands. “Fine! We’ll both go. If it causes problems, then it’s on you!”

He relaxed. “I can deal with that. But if anything happened to you,” he cut off, swallowing. 

Her face softened and she sighed. “Okay, okay, we go together.”

* * *

 

Lematin and his Cats spent the rest of the day with them, plotting. Kylo and Rey snuck in training time whenever possible, but he seemed leery of letting her put the Force behind her glyphs. He still didn’t trust her control. It grated at her, but she knew he was right.

Lematin arrived in the morning with 50 men and women. Less than half were druids, and far fewer were shifters. But even among the 15 odd shifters, Rey was stunned by the variety. Some offered up their shifter forms, but Rey was embarrassed to ask those who didn’t. It felt too personal. Some of the druids were impressively strong, and some were what Lematin called Energy-sensitive.

“They can’t use the Force to manipulate physical objects, including thoughts and memories, but they can sense the energies of a person or Force-object. Some can influence the Force itself, which can indirectly influence a physical object. It’s very tricky. No one really understands Energy-sensitives,” Lematin explained to them.

“I think that’s what Finn is,” Rey murmured to Kylo, who just frowned at her remark.

Rey eagerly soaked it all up, marveling over every new piece of information. But it unsettled Kylo and the Knights. It ran counter to everything Snoke taught them.

The group buzzed with nervous energy as dusk approached. Their inside group was in place, waiting until dark to silence the guard towers one by one and open the main gates. From there, they would split up, racing against the city to secure the barracks and find the governor’s home before someone raised the alarm.

Darkness fell and before long, Rey found herself pressed into the cold ground on a hillside, waiting with the rest of the group. Their horses were nearly half a mile away, left in the care of the twins. They all agreed attempting to ride in would be a disaster. The city had grown out of a small village, each ring hanging off the existing buildings, haphazard and disorganized. It wasn’t until recently that they’d built a wall and a main boulevard that led from the gate to the city official buildings in the center; it was the only clear way in and out.

Rey let out a tense breath. Kylo practically vibrated beside her. He was _excited._ His gloves creaked as he gripped his lightsaber, waiting for the signal from Rhys. This is what he was made for. This is where all his power and experience carried him. Foreboding wormed through her stomach, squishy and sickening. She observed his excitement at a distance, unsure what to think of it.

The time they spent waiting grew long. Too long.

Kylo and Rey stared at Catra, who’s unfocused gaze told them she was talking to Rhys. Her face creased in a frown.

“What’s going on?” Kylo growled at her.

Her frown tightened.

“Catra?” Rey tapped on her shoulder.

“He’s lost,” she hissed at them, still staring at nothing. “In that maze of tenements.”

Kylo’s jaw slackened. “You two grew up here!”

“He was never good with directions,” Catra grumbled.

Rey squeezed her eyes shut. “This is a mistake,” she whispered to Kylo. “We have 60 people, against an entire city and a garrison of _at least_ 200 soldiers. And we have to find the governor. What were we thinking?”

Kylo cut her off with a kiss. Everyone pretended not to notice as he rested his forehead against hers. “This is a crazy idea but we’re doing it. Everything will be fine.”

Catra jolted, gaze snapping to them. “It’s time, the gates will go up in a few minutes.”

Kylo motioned to the rest of the group and everyone rose and took off in a creeping towards the city.

Lematin and the rest headed east, where the barracks and military grounds were located. Kylo, Rey, Catra, and one of Lematin’s people, Midori, peeled off, weaving through the streets in a different direction. Rey’s skin buzzed for less than a second. She looked at Kylo. “Shield,” he explained. “Can’t see us now.” A hunchbacked beggar looked around him in bewilderment as bodiless footfalls raced past him.

Catra squinted at street signs, mouth silently working as she navigated them through the city. They turned onto a wider street, lined with larger homes, each one more decadent than the last as they trotted by. At the very end was the largest of them all, more of a chateau than a house. Rey noticed the New Republic’s banner didn’t fly from their flagstaffs – no banner did.

In the distance, an explosive boomed. Catra cursed and shared a worried look with Midori, who pressed her lips together. Explosives were supposed to be a last ditch effort.

Kylo marched up to the building and flung out a hand, blasting the doors inwards. She internally growled at him for the destruction. Adrenaline pulsed in their veins and the ebb and flow of their bond was a single, burning ribbon between them right now. Rey’s head buzzed; the intimacy of it was intoxicating.

They followed Kylo inside, the light of their sabers bathing the entry in violet. They heard a gasp and swirling skirts.

“Come out,” Rey demanded, her eyes darting into dim corners. “Hands out, we won’t hurt you.”

A woman in servant livery stepped out of a doorway, ashen faced and arms out stretched. Rey stepped closer, impressed when the woman didn’t retreat.

Rey let her saber tip towards the ground. “What’s your name?”

The servant watched them with round eyes. “Viyya.”

“Where’s the Governor?” Rey pointed her saber in the direction of the upper floors.

“Third floor, big doors,” Viyya gulped.

Kylo waved a hand and Viyya crumpled to the floor, unconscious.

“Search the rest of the grounds,” Kylo instructed Catra and Midori. “We can’t have anyone raising the alarm.”

They slinked away while Kylo and Rey headed up a sweeping staircase. They extinguished their lightsabers, hoping to avoid too much panic. They found massive double doors at the top of the third floor like the servant had said. Nodding once to each other, they pulled them open and rushed inside.

The room was suddenly bathed in the soft glow of blue light and Rey almost gasped when she saw the source. In the palm of one hand, Kylo held a bright sphere; it transformed between a nebulous cloud of energy and a tight ball of pulsing light. Her eyebrow arched. _That’s new. So much for trying to avoid panic,_ she commented. Kylo spared her a tiny smile before a gasp brought their attention back. A grey haired woman clutched blankets to her chest.

“Good evening,” Rey began in what she hoped was a calming voice. She nodded at the woman. “Governor Jusel Quinn?” “We are sorry to wake you but we have matters to discuss. Please, get dressed, we will meet you outside.”

“This is most unusual,” she mumbled, stumbling out of bed. Rey nodded to Kylo to give her some privacy.

“Don’t try anything foolish,” Kylo warned her in clipped tones.

Jusel stepped out, hastily dressed, her military-style jacket hung open and revealed the top several buttons on her blouse not yet finished.

“Are you the First Order?” She demanded. Rey had to give her credit for her boldness.

Rey shook her head just as her eyes locked onto a crescent strip of black and red ink on Jusel’s chest, the rest disappearing beneath her shirt. Jusel froze as Rey leaned forward, flicking the garment back with one finger to reveal their wolf design, tattooed over her heart. She tapped the symbol and then looked the woman straight in her wide green eyes. “The Fíor Strait rises.” Her eyes grew even wider and she swayed. Rey whirled, her cloak swishing about her feet. “Come, we need to talk.”

She clung to the door way, immobile. “It’s you. It’s you. It’s really you.” She immediately dropped to her knees, head bowed. “My Sovereign Queen.”

Rey’s face burned. “What are you doing? Get up, get up!”

Kylo watched with a stony expression, but Rey could see the amusement dancing beneath the surface of his eyes.

“But, you are, I’m – I’m supposed to – “ Jusel blustered. Rey rolled her eyes and grabbed her arm, hauling her to her feet.

“NO bowing,” she growled at her. “No groveling. Just none of that. I’m Rey.”

The governor eyed her sideways. “Okay, Rey. No bowing.” She jerked her chin towards Kylo. “Who’s he?”

Rey smirked and arched one brow. “He _was_ First Order.”

“Kylo Ren,” Jusel breathed, barely a whisper, noticing for the first time the lightsaber clipped to his belt.

“Yes,” Rey told her. “And all the stories are true.”

The governor looked like she might faint and Rey regretted her words. She didn’t have the slightest clue what kinds of stories she might have heard about Kylo. “Where can we talk?”

Jusel pointed down one hallway. “My study,” she said, still dazed.

They filed into the study and Rey gently pushed Jusel into a chair.

“Lios is ours now,” he stated simply. “You are not in charge.”

Rey shot him a dark look. “We still need you,” she hastened to add. “But Ren is right, we are taking the city.”

Jusel nodded furiously. “Yes, yes, we expected you to come.” She ran a hand through her short hair. “But not like this.”

“What were you expecting?” Kylo asked.

The Governor shook her head with a vague gesture. “Not some covert infiltration in the middle of the night. An army, druids…just…more.”

Rey snorted. “We didn’t want to cause a panic,” she fibbed. She also didn’t want them to know how small their current “army” was. “We need you to tell your general to stand down.”

“General Kostya isn’t very experienced, I don’t think you’ll have much trouble,” Jusel’s reply was interrupted by Catra and Midori bursting into the study.

“Kylo, they need reinforcement. Things are not going well.” As if to punctuate Catra’s words, alarm bells began ringing in the distance.

Rey and Kylo shared a look. “Go,” she told him.

“Stay with them,” Kylo instructed Catra and Midori before striding out.

Jusel twisted a silver band around one finger. “What’s going on?”

Rey stared after Kylo. “Our plan was to disable the guard towers and prevent anyone from sounding the alert while we secured the barracks. For as long as possible, anyway.”

Jusel’s brows knit. “But only half our army is in the barracks.”

Midori sharply inhaled. “What do you mean?”

“After the First Order began attacking towns in the North, we trained around 200 civilians as a reserve. They’re all ready to come to fight at a moment’s notice.”

Rey twitched and the bond flared painfully before fading. Her chest tightened as she cast out for Kylo, frantic, but she brushed up against murky shields.

She turned to Catra. “What just happened?”

Catra shook her head, eyes glazed over. “Rhys is distant. They’re all preoccupied with something.”

Rey’s hand tightened on her lightsaber. “We have to get down there right now.” She rushed out of the room, pounding down the stairs, ignoring Catra calling after her. She didn’t need Catra to guide her to the military grounds, she just followed the aching tug in her chest pulling her in Kylo’s direction.

In the streets, a handful of men and women jogged towards the military garrison. Jusel’s reserve army, she figured. Rey ignored them and sprinted past, she didn’t have the time or control to try and incapacitate them. The guard towers were still ringing, and a smoky glow rose in the distance. She arrived to the military grounds to find chaos.

A broken ring of druids struggled to hold a shield around the barracks, while scattered pairs of Lematin’s soldiers fought those who escaped the building. Some of the Knights threw small fireballs through the air in between swipes of their lightsabers. Whistling arrows screamed down from archers atop the wall. The grounds already held far too many of the Lios military reserve. She spotted Kylo on the other side of the grounds, just the blur of a red blade through the rising smoke and flames of a burning building.

The Force quaked around her, the taste of darkness in her mouth. She tripped over the body of a dead soldier, his eyes rolled up into the back of his head, terror frozen on his face. Bodies littered the grounds, identical masks of fear on their faces, a clear trail of destruction. Her heart drummed against her ribs as she ran, skirting the fighting and flames as she raced towards Kylo’s side.

He spun, his lightsaber moving too fast to track as he sliced down the ring of soldiers around him.

Fear bubbled inside her, a deep power welling up. “Kylo, stop!” She threw up one hand and the power blasted outwards, the impact bowling over several rows of soldiers in a circle around her and throwing Kylo off his feet like a child knocking over blocks. She almost gagged as the smell of viscera swallowed her. He leaped up with ease, his eyes blazing and bright. She shoved on his barriers again and they cracked. His energy flooded her, unstable and warped, and the darkness of it sent her heart plummeting. Her frame trembled with rising fury and she grit her teeth so hard her jaw hurt. “These people are not our enemies,” she growled. Misery raced across his features. Then his barriers were back up, complete with the arrogant mask she hated so much.

“I never agreed to your silly condition. This is war,” he said, nearly sneering. “Besides, they attacked us. What else was I supposed to do?”

Distantly, they heard the notes of surrender played on a war horn. The soldiers she’d knocked over ran away from them, weapons hanging at their sides. But Rey and Kylo barely noticed. Her eyes drilled into him. She wanted to scream. She wanted to smack that mask off his face. “You know they don’t stand a chance against you. This is not self-defense, this is slaughter. Needless, disgusting slaughter.” She delivered the words like a series of blows. “You are no better than Snoke.” She turned away before she could see his face shatter into utter ruin. She left him there, standing alone in his ring of destruction.

* * *

 

After General Kostya had sounded the order for surrender, they worked to string the mayhem into some semblance of organization. Kylo eventually followed Rey back, melting into his role of Master Knight like nothing had happened. She played along with their charade of normalcy. Now was not the time to appear divided in front of their newly conquered city.

Kylo resisted the urge to slump against the nearest wall. Rey would barely look at him, only speaking when necessary. Even with her own attempted barriers up, the caustic acidity of her angry stung his mind any time he tried to reach out. He refocused on the conversation at hand.

Kostya eyed them distrustfully. “What do we do with the soldiers who won’t join? Keep them in prison?”

Kylo scrubbed his eyes. “I don’t know,” he answered with a sigh. He wasn’t used to taking prisoners.

Catra chewed her lip. “Let them leave the city. They can find the Resistance if they want.”

Everyone had given up calling them the Republic. It was too hard to imagine their small operation as the last remnants of a once huge nation. Rey found it hard to call their own tiny group a nation as well. They had a city to their name now, filled with soldiers who didn’t want to join, many of them wounded, and probably hostile citizens.

“How many are like you?” Rey asked Jusel, gesturing towards the tattoo now hidden under her jacket.

Her’s mouth twisted. “Lios is quietly known as a refuge for the Fíor and shifters, if they want to risk living in a city. There’s probably a fair amount, but not even a quarter, by far.”

Catra eyed Kylo and Rey. “You need to say something to them.”

“Kylo’s done enough,” Rey snapped.

He recoiled, like he’d been slapped, before stomping away before anyone could see the wounded look on his face. Catra stared at Kylo’s retreating back with an expression approaching motherly disappointment before she turned it on Rey.

Rey kept a level gaze, refusing to let Catra get to her. “I have to meet with Finn.” She glanced up at the rising moon. “I need to leave now. We can talk to the soldiers in the morning.” She made it a few steps before turning back to Catra. “Tell Kylo where I went, if he asks.”

Jusel and Kostya protested as Rey left, but Catra cut them off. “Let her go. We can figure it out ourselves,” she told them.

Rey saw Kylo staring at her across the grounds and turned away. It hurt to even look at him. He brushed up against her barriers, hesitant and almost apologetic. She ignored him. She didn’t want to be near him, much less touch him. She knew she couldn’t keep him out of her head if she was any closer.

Every breath still clogged with the sticky blanket of blood and death. Behind her eyelids at every blink she saw the ground around Kylo littered with bodies. Fresh fury bloomed in her chest. She had so hoped…

She shoved the feelings aside. She had to deal with the next hurdle: informing Finn – the Resistance, really – about Lios.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooo I've got the next 2-3 chapters lined up (depends how I break it down). Which means consistent updates for at least the next couple weeks! Yayyy. This chapter felt like a filler to ome, but sometimes it's gotta happen. There is very good stuff in the next couple chapters and I'm excited about it. Kylo's going to get a haircut and he's going to hate it. Rey gets to wear a pretty dress. And there might be a little reunion between mother and son :0
> 
> ETA: Unrelated note for people who've been here from the beginning - I'm making updates to past chapters. There are a couple of reasons. 1. I started fanfic as a writing exercise to get better at fiction (im writing a book) and I've improved, so it drives me crazy to see little mistakes and stuff I'm doing better now. 2. I had no idea where i was going when i started and there are small inconsistencies and details i want to weed out. None of the updates will change major plot points at all (most of them are cutting out needless content and grammar stuff). Basically cleaning things up and altering certain details to make my original intent clearer. So reread if you want, but Im not sure anyone will notice. If this bugs readers, im sorry :/ this is first and foremost a way for me to improve as a writer, and editing old content is key to that.


	29. Chapter 29

The familiar strides of Dusky’s hooves against the packed earth eased Rey’s thoughts into a soothing rhythm.

_This is war._

Kylo’s words cut through her mind. He was right and she knew it. Her chest contracted, the face of every life she’d ended since the fateful night in her village flashing through her mind. She wanted him to be something he was not. Something they both were not any longer: innocent.

A flash of anger pulsed through her. The Force had taken so much away from them, swept them up in a destiny neither could turn away from. She felt she might drown in the loss of her old self. But she wasn’t alone in this struggle, she had Kylo. _He’d had no one,_ she reminded herself. Compassion washed through her.

Tentatively she reached out, seeking him even across their distance. His wave of relief answered her – warm and ragged and gentle.

This was the Kylo she knew – not the one who gave his adversaries no mercy or snarled at her requests for lenience. And this was the Rey she knew – open, accepting. Forgiving. Not the one who boiled people alive where they stood or sought out families in the night, completely devoid of free will.

_We are both._ His thought came to her clear, vibrating among the nebulous cloud of their bond. It held a trace of loss; he knew how she felt, the splitting of who she was and who she had to be now. He _knew._

She straightened with fresh confidence even while tears pricked her eyes. She could hate the Force for what it’d done to their lives, but she could never hate what it’d brought her. It’d brought her Kylo. 

* * *

 

Finn paced while Poe leaned against the Lonely Oak, leg propped up, arms loosely folded across his chest. Finn glanced at the moon, just barely past its zenith. “She’s late.” His words ended on the sounds of galloping hoof beats. Rey crested the hill on a large grey horse.

Finn rushed forward to hug her. Her neck and hair smelled of smoke and sweat. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” she answered, eyes sliding to Poe as he pushed away from the tree and sauntered forward. She wasn’t surprised to see him.

Poe fixed his gaze on her. “We sighted smoke over Lios. Lots of it.”

She stared back, considering her words. “We took Lios.”

Finn gaped and Poe’s eyes narrowed. “We?”

She forced out the words. “The Fíor Stait.”

The words sank in.

Finn let out a strangled noise. “ _What.”_

Rey responded by pulling a sealed letter out of her bag and handing it to Poe. “That’s for General Organa. Tell her she has a week from tomorrow to decide. Return here with her decision at high noon on that day.” Poe saw the wolf emblem pressed into the scarlet wax, the night shadows turning it into the color of congealing blood. His dazed expression turned foreboding.

“I’m sorry,” Rey said softly to Finn, avoiding his eyes. He clapped a hand around her elbow, pulling her close. His face was all angles of tight anger and pain.

“Ask Ren about what happened when he was with Luke.”

She blinked at the sudden change. “What?”

“Ask him why Luke left. Ask him why he abandoned the Light.”

The vitriol in his voice chilled her. She searched his eyes and found no warmth. She pulled her arm out of his grasp and backed away.

His face melted into sorrow. “Rey?”

She shook her head, confused, a new loneliness washing over her. She couldn’t help but feel as if she lost Finn, somehow.

When she returned, Rey floated across the grounds, following the tug towards Kylo. She ran across Áinee , who sported several fresh cuts, but seemed otherwise fine.

“I can take your horse,” she told Rey. “You look exhausted.”

“Are we not going back to our camp?” Rey questioned her.

She shook her head. “There are some empty rooms in the officer quarters. It will work for now.”

Rey followed her directions and found the stone building near the barracks, one wall singed from nearby fires that still smoldered. She trudged up several flights of stairs, looking for the right room number. Kylo appeared before she found them, his face grave and pale but his eyes soft. They reached for each other at the same time, him smoothing a hand across the nape of her neck while she pressed an ear to his chest. They sighed in unison, melting into each other, silent. His mind brushed hers. They didn’t need to say anything. His tunic smelled like smoke and blood, but underneath that his scent still lingered, comforting and welcome.

Inside the room, Rey slumped onto the narrow bed and Kylo crouched down in front of her between her knees, lacing their fingers. His eyes searched her face. “How did it go with Finn?”

Her mouth twisted. “Not bad, but not good. It felt wrong somehow. Poe was there.”

Something inscrutable flashed across his features before they turned wary. “Is that all?”

She bit her lip. “Finn said something to me…”

He tipped his head, waiting for her to continue, but instead she rested her hand on his own, closed her eyes, and shared the memory.

Before it even finished, Kylo was leaping to his feet with shuddering breaths. His terror hit her like a blow to the chest.

“I told you never to ask about that,” he said, his voice bordering on a shout. She reached a hand out to him but he twisted away from her touch.

“Kylo, _what happened_?”

He violently shook his head, refusing to meet her gaze.

She ducked down to intercept him. “Please,” she plead. “You’re scaring me.”

Grief and fear warred on his face. “You’ll hate me.”

“Kylo please.”

His eyes locked on the pendant around her neck. He brushed it with one finger, an unfathomable misery filling his eyes. “You’ll know eventually anyway,” he murmured hoarsely. He deliberated for a while and finally let out a heavy breath, clasping her hand in his. His eyes fluttered shut and several seconds later, Rey felt the rest of his barriers recede from his mind, the deepest ones he always kept locked and cold. Behind them was just emptiness, save for one single thought. A memory. He offered it to her. She shut her eyes and reached towards it, sinking into it like returning to a dream. 

* * *

 

Smears of green resolved into a forest. Kylo, _Ben,_ sighed, the long breath lost in the chirping birds and soft patter of leaves rustling in the summer breeze. He sat on Luke’s porch, lanky legs pulled up to support his arms as he surveyed the expanse of empty forest around the small cabin.

He supposed he should be meditating. But Luke had left hours ago that morning, and he should have been back. Ben was beginning to worry.

His adolescent muscles itched for movement. He looked around for a practice blade. Luke spent more and more of their training time teaching him meditation and focus, rather than fighting skills, which confused Ben. He knew he was good, the length of the blade balanced in his palm felt right – fighting came to him easily, his focus narrowing until it was just him and his opponent. The haze of his troubles flew away, and his core burned white-hot, until there was nothing else. Everything was sharper. Sounds, smells, his sight - magnified. Ben thought Luke would be thrilled about it, but he’d seen the troubled look that always settled in Luke’s face as he practiced. He didn’t understand it.

Ben was shuffling down the porch steps with a practice blade in hand when he heard whinnying and the distant thrum of hoof beats. He paused, waiting for the riders to enter the clearing. He recognized their energy before he saw them and delight unfolded and a grin lit up his face.

“Dylan, Lei, Akil!” He called out to them. The last rider entered the clearing, a lock of sandy blonde hair flopping into his green eyes. Ben’s grin widened. “Desi!”

His friends didn’t reply, just pulled up short in a semi-circle around them, casting nervous looks at older boy, as if for reassurance. Ben froze, taking in the details one at a time. The sight of his friend was so familiar, and somehow off, like looking at a picture upside down.

Desi’s face was longer and thinner, his shoulders had broadened in the year since Ben had seen him last. His eyes seemed brighter than usual, offset by the shocking scarlet cloak draped around his frame. The hair on the back of his neck stood up and a bright flash caught his gaze. In Desi’s right hand, he brandished a gleaming long-sword. The blade looked brand new, impossibly glossy and sharp. Desi held it easily at his hip, his sharp eyes never leaving Ben.

Ben’s steps faltered. “Desi?” The coldness in his friend’s face wrenched his gut. “What’s going on?”

The other boys refused to meet Ben’s eyes. Desi continued to approach and he involuntarily took a step back. “Is something wrong?”

Desi chuckled, the sound dry and harsh. “Oh, something is very wrong.” His crackly teenage voice had broken over the last year into something smooth and sharp. Ben flinched at the accusation in Desi’s eyes.

He realized all the other boys also had weapons in their hands, tucked behind a leg or pressed back as if they were ashamed to be holding them.

Dylan quietly knocked an arrow against his bow.

“Is it true?” Desi growled at Ben.

“Is what true?”

“Your grandfather was Darth Vader. A _shapeshifter._ And so are you.”

Ben’s heart dropped. The Force hummed inside him and something dark rose, frantic and twisting.

“He was,” Ben answered uncertainly. “But I’m _not_ ,” he insisted.

Desi tilted his head with a cold smirk. “Sure about that?”

Ben scowled. “Don’t you think I would know that? Don’t you think my parents would tell me? They wouldn’t let me fight with the Resistance if I was.”

Desi looked around pointedly at the empty forest. “Looks to me like they’re stopping you from doing exactly that.”

“They sent me here to train,” he bit back. But a dark voice murmured in his mind. It was a familiar voice, one that laced through his earliest memories. A voice that grew louder by the day. It fanned on the truth of Desi’s words. They took root and curled around his heart.

Desi twirled the sword and Ben flinched, fear flickering inside him. He willed it down but it didn’t listen.

“It's insane. I'm not a shapeshifter. I would know. And how could _you_ possibly know even if I was?” Ben said, eyes steady on the moving blade. His words caught in his dry throat.

“I overheard your mum talking about it to your father.”

Ben twitched. “My dad’s back?”

He smirked. “Back and gone. Stopped long enough to argue with your mum. She wanted you to come and visit. He said it was too dangerous to have a shapeshifter in camp. That _you_ were dangerous to them.”

Ben’s world stopped. “He didn’t say that.”

Desi’s eyes blazed with a cruel pleasure as he leaned down. “He did.” His words were so certain, so sure.

Anger blazed inside Ben. “He _didn’t_ say that. You’re lying.”

He snorted. “Why would I lie about that?”

Ben searched for reasons but all he heard was the Force howling in his mind, and the spreading shadow of the _thing_ twisting up inside him. His limbs resonated with energy.

He watched the eyes of his friends go wide at once. Dylan hissed, raising his arrow. Real fear rippled over Desi’s face for the first time.

“So it is true,” he murmured.

The fury inside Ben was deafening. “What are you talking about?”

“Look at yourself, Ben!” He punctuated his words with a wild shove of his blade. Ben turned around, catching his reflection in the cabin’s front window. Even in the daylight, through the uneven surface of the beveled glass, he saw it. His skin burned with eerie luminosity. His eyes glowed bright and yellow. He stumbled away from the ring of the boys, scrubbing his hands through his hair. “No, no, no,” he muttered to himself.

Desi’s face had gone white, but he urged his horse towards Ben, and the other boys followed, weapons at the ready. “I’m a Vivant,” Desi said, his whispering voice barely audible to anyone but himself. “We kill shapeshifters. They are soulless creatures of the Dark side. This is what we do. This is my destiny.”

Ben heard him. He could hear every syllable with painful clarity. “No,” he mouthed. “Please, Desi. I’m your best friend.”

Desi’s eyes clenched shut as the words cut through him with a shudder Ben could feel, but he steeled himself. His eyes snapped open. Ben was close enough to see his face reflected in their fevered green depths. “Run,” he growled at Ben.

Ben stumbled backwards and the boys drew closer. His breath rang ragged in his ears. Desi’s arm rose, and Ben dodged a swing, the blade singing through the air near his face. He choked back a sob and turned towards the forest, blinking through wet eyes as he ran from the nightmare behind him.

Tall as he was, his human legs were no match for the pace of the horses behind him, bred for hunting. They were at his back in an instant, and Ben felt another blow whoosh through the air near his head.

Pain exploded in his side as an arrow found him and he stumbled to the ground. He turned to face his _friends_ , a deep anguish welling. He yanked the arrow out and a snarl ripped from him. He ducked under the swing of blades, plunging again into the forest. More pain. Across his shoulder, a sword biting into his bicep, another arrow skimming his hip. Ben’s anguish grew, hotter and hotter, hardening into fury until he vibrated with it. He stopped, turning to face the boys. The forest shimmered, a white haze creeping into the corners. Suddenly Rey knew what was going to happen. She tugged away from the memory as Ben’s view grew white and bewilderment consumed him. _Kylo, please, stop._

She tumbled out of his memory a split second after Ben exploded into color and light. She couldn’t face what happened on the other side.

Kylo’s memory released her and she stumbled against him, gasping. He gripped her forearms, bracing her. Tears cooled on her cheeks. She shuddered, pushing away from him, fighting back sobs. “You killed my brother.”

His chin trembled and he clenched his fists. Defenses leapt to his lips: it was his first time shifting, they attacked first, he had no control. No choice. But he knew nothing he could say would fix what just broke inside of Rey. “I told you that you would hate me.”

She shook her head over and over, pressing her hands across her eyes. Their bond was a flood of her horror and his shame, all bloody and raw and furious. Her stomach rolled and she thought she would be sick. Even through her thoughts, she heard his – his defenses. She knew they were true, but she couldn’t listen to them. She struggled to breathe and her vision swam, the edges growing white. “No,” she whispered to herself.

Kylo changed in an instant, everything melting into concern as he reached for her. “Rey!”

She turned before he could get her, slipping past him out of the room, breaking into a run. She raced out of the building and through the narrow streets of the city, seeking out the darkest shadows and into their reaches, disappearing like a ghost.

* * *

 

Rey found herself in the abandoned building Kylo had brought her days before, drawn to it like a moth to light. She curled up against the crumbling floorboards and cried for hours. She didn’t know what to do. She couldn’t believe the Resistance was filled with such evil. She couldn't believe her brother, her protector, her hero, could kill so easily. She couldn't believe the man she shared her mind with ended her brother's life.

The night turned grey and Rey crawled out of the dusty building. She found the bath houses and hid in a private shower, standing with her arms wrapped around herself until the lukewarm water turned icy.

She stepped lightly through the officer building, seeking out an empty room. After finding one devoid of personal items, cold and with a thin layer of dust on the ground, she crawled into a hard bed as the sun came up, wrapped in Kylo’s old cloak that she still wore, the rough weave reminding her of him. She felt wrung out, but more tears came. She cried until she fell into a dreamless, grey sleep.

* * *

 

Catra forced her out of bed around noon, wisely avoiding the topic of Kylo. She knew something was wrong. She handed Rey a much appreciated fresh pair of clothes, a nondescript grey tunic and fitted pants. They were still considerably more formal than anything she had ever worn.

The city seemed relatively calm, all things considered. Clerks were setting type for fliers to post around the town with information, inviting community leaders to a forum the next evening. Jusel thought it was the best way to disseminate the shift of power. Already the news has spread by mouth across the city and there was not a single citizen who hadn't heard. She followed Catra around from building to building, putting on a strong face for the carousel of people introduced to her. Jusel’s “other official” in the town on the Fíor’s side turned out to be the only surviving Lios senator, Roman Stel. She was a kind woman, bubbling with compelling energy and a charisma that drew eyes. But Rey could barely muster more than a thin smile for anyone she met.

Her heart squeezed every time she saw Kylo. He was heavily shielded, as was she. His absence left an aching hole in her chest.

Much to everyone’s relief, most of the soldiers chose to join their cause. “It’s because of Kylo,” Catra murmured to her as they watched soldiers line up and sign their names for enlistment.

Her eyebrows knit. “I don’t understand.”

“They saw what he could do. Even for a few minutes, they still saw it. And they know who he is. Stories move quickly.”

Rey turned back to watch the soldiers, blinking in confusion. Kylo was right, she didn’t understand war.

Two unbearably tense days passed. Then three. Then four. They spoke only when they met with Knights, Lios militia officers, and people from Saritas’ traveling town as they tried to wrangle the chaotic groups into some kind of cohesive force while simultaneously keeping the civilians calm and feeling secure. Soon the Resistance’s week would be up and someone would return to the Lonely Oak for their answer.

Throughout the discussions, Rey was lost, completely out of her element, but she kept a confident front. The only time she felt truly confident was training with the Knights. They drilled her to exhaustion, bombarding her with fighting techniques that meshed the physical with her new druid abilities. Zuri was her favorite to fight with – she fought dirty like a brawler, and that was one thing Rey knew how to do well. She knew Catra was frustrated with both her and Kylo. He should be training Rey, she knew it would be a hundred times faster. But she didn’t pry, and Rey appreciated her patience.

Even though she fell into bed exhausted every night, the fatigue couldn’t keep away her milling thoughts. She replayed Kylo’s memory over and over. She didn’t know how to accept that the Resistance was so _hateful._ And if Kylo was right and they were, how could they ever hope to work with them? The Fíor would have no access to the map, and even if the Resistance found the Claiohm, it would be useless to them. They were all doomed to fail.

_How can I ask Kylo to look his mother in the eye after what he told me? How can I forgive the man who killed my brother?_ She wondered what her parents would think and her thoughts grew sour. She shouldn’t care what they’d think. Her brother had betrayed his best friend and her parents had abandoned her. Between it all, she caught herself wondering why she couldn’t remember Ben. Desi had been enough years older that she might not remember his friends. But why hadn’t Kylo recognized her? If they’d been linked from birth, the threads of fate binding them together, why hadn’t he known so many years ago? Her thoughts spun around and around all night.

Finally the Resistance’s week was up and Rey rode to the Lonely Oak with Catra. Two Resistance messengers met them, one with the banner of the New Republic cinched to his saddle, both bearing far more weapons than messengers would normally carry. They nodded to each other and one of them held out a letter for Rey, pinched between the very tips of her fingers. She tossed it the last few inches like throwing scraps to an animal. Rey and Catra didn’t miss the barely veiled contempt on their faces and she wondered how much they truly knew. They waited until they were just out of sight to stop and rip open the letter. Rey scanned it, expecting the worst.

_Rey,_

_I agree to meet with you on your terms. We will arrive at fourteenth hour in three days._

Leia had signed her name with great flourishes and all her titles, the list taking up more space than her actual message, noting how clearly she had eschewed the use of _any_ title for Rey. She also had left Kylo out of it all together.

She let Catra announce it to everyone else, instead taking solace in her room with no explanation. She paused only to yank off her boots before crawling onto her bed. Now the meeting with the Resistance loomed over them. Rey didn’t know how they were supposed to present a united front when she could barely stand to be in the same room as Kylo. She laid in bed and stared at the ceiling for hours, trapped in a fight with her own thoughts.

Dusk fell. She made minimal effort to ready herself for bed, unwilling to leave even though her stomach growled. She just didn’t want to see anyone right now, especially Kylo. His room was only two doors down.

She laid sleepless in bed, staring at the smooth seams of the stone ceiling above her. Winter’s chill had reverted to a miserable autumn dampness, and the stone structures soaked it up. Wet cold wasn’t like winter cold; it seeped into her muscles, making her heavy blankets worthless. The ticking clock on her bedside table was harsh in her ears. She never looked at it – she’d gone her whole life without a timepiece. It only served to annoy her at night. With a frustrated growl, she shoved it under a small pile of clothes.

The silence didn’t help, her mind was louder than her harassing clock. Falteringly, she let go of her mental barriers, reaching out into the gaping space behind them, expecting to find barriers. But Kylo flooded into her, chilling her more than the cold of her room. He jumped, startled by her sudden presence and immediately tried to stuff down his emotions but she felt them anyway. Her heart dropped, tangled with the knots in her stomach. With a sigh, she swung out of bed. She crept out of her room and to his door, pressing her forehead against the rough wood grain. She felt the thick weave of his Force lock but it melted away before she even reached to untangle it. Her heart raced as she slipped into his room.

He watched her approach and she perch on his bedside. They stared at each other in expectant silence. Finally, she leaned over and pressed her palm to his cheek. A sigh whispered from him and he reached for her. They settled on their sides, facing each other. He ran fingers through her loose hair, brushing out tangles.

“I don’t know what to believe anymore,” she told him, words ragged.

“Believe _me,_ ” he plead with her.

“They were your friends.”

“Only because they didn’t know who I truly was. _What_ I truly was. The moment they found out I was a shapeshifter, I was an animal to them. Worse, even. An abomination. The Resistance taught us shapeshifters must be killed at all costs. They were the enemy.”

She shook her head again. “But you were just a boy. You’d never hurt anyone.”

“It didn’t matter. To them a shapeshifter is a shapeshifter.”

Her breaths shuddered. “My brother…” She swallowed, unable to continue.

His mind unfurled again, his presence sweeping into her. He curled his arms around her and pulled her closer. He held her as she started to weep, stroking her head and pressing kisses to her hair. “I’m sorry Rey. I’m so sorry.” His voice was thick and strained.

She pictured a young Ben Solo changing back in the forest alone to find his dead friends around him. “I know it wasn’t your fault.” The faces of the father and son she’d slaughtered flashed before her.

Kylo pulled her chin up to meet her eyes. “That wasn’t your fault either. You have to accept that.”

Her lids squeezed and tears flowed around them. “But more people are going to die because of me. You’re right Kylo, I don’t understand war. I don’t understand how we can just make a decision to send hundreds of soldiers to fight and die for some greater cause they might never live to see _._ ”

He propped himself up on his elbow, gaze insistent and sharp. “It’s the only way to defeat your enemy. People are going to die.”

She stilled. “Is that how you justified it to yourself?”

He sighed and fell back onto the bed, staring at the ceiling. “I believed in restoring peace. The First Order was the only way I saw that happening. And I had nowhere else to go.”

“But the Stormtroopers. All those people the First Order killed or took to be turned.”

His chest hitched. “I know.”

She stared at the silhouette of his face. Did she forgive him? Could she? _Should_ she? Did repentance justify mercy? In the dark corners of his mind, she brushed the seething disgust beneath a cold veil. Disgust for himself. He wasn't just repentant – he was desperate. She wasn’t sure if that was enough. She didn’t know how to decide who deserves forgiveness and mercy. But it might not matter. Already, warmth crept into her that was more than a dependency on him, that was more than the result of their bond. She was afraid to name it.

His eyes captured hers again and she felt him cradle her thoughts. “I can’t ask you to forgive me. I don’t deserve it.”

She shook her head. “I forgive you,” she responded, realizing she really did mean it even as she said it. Her body felt lighter, like she could float off the earth. He pulled her back into his arms again, not trusting his voice at the moment. “But we have to be better,” she said.

His fingers moved against her scalp again. “I know we do. But I don’t know how to be anything else.”

“You do,” she promised him. “I know you do.” His heartbeat thrummed against her ear, always too fast. Anxious. His whole body ached with exhaustion.

“Have you been sleeping?”

He shook his head, responding slowly. “Nightmares.”

She pulled his head down, meeting his lips with hers. Their minds twined together, mimicking the movement of their bodies against each other. She spread into him, bumping up against the farthest corners of his thoughts and memories. As always, there were places completely dark and impenetrable. She wondered when he would learn to trust someone else again.

* * *

 

The last few days before the Resistance arrived passed quickly. Everyone noticed the change between Kylo and Rey immediately, and it made an obvious difference. A sense of calm and balance finally settled over the city.

The night before, Kylo’s mind, which had been jittery ever since the Resistance returned their decision, turned into a nest of terrified, slithering thoughts. Rey made her best effort to distract him, and they finally drifted into a rare, peaceful sleep.

“Rey, I need you.” Saritas’ mild voice at the door woke Rey the next morning.

Kylo stirred with a groan. “Tell her to go away.” She chuckled when he rolled over and dragged a pillow onto his head. She pulled one edge up, dropping a kiss on his cheek before replacing the lumpy corner.

She answered the door with a weary frown. “What?”

The older woman gave her an amused smile. “Time to get ready.”

Rey glanced at the sky, evaluating the sun’s position. “We’re not meeting with the Resistance for hours.”

Saritas fingered her hair, lifting up a lock made entirely of split-ends. “It will take at least that long.”

Rey eyed her, wary. “For what?”

“You’re a queen now, Rey. You need to look like one.” The word still sounded foreign and ridiculous to her. She took Rey’s hand and pulled her into the corridor. “Go put some clothes on, we’re going back to my tents.”

She grumbled indecipherable curses, too tired to resist. “Do I get to take a bath? A real one?”

“Of course.”

That brightened her mood significantly and she hurried off to get dressed.

“What about Kylo? Men don’t need the royal treatment?” She questioned Saritas as they walked swiftly to her tents.

Saritas surprised her with a rare grin. “Oh he does and I’m sure he’ll give everyone hell the entire time. I feel lucky.”

Rey reached out to him with a warning. _Be nice. Just cooperate. Don’t punch anyone._

His answer was immediate, his mind already strung tight with irritation. _Matin showed up and announced they’re going to cut my hair. I’m definitely going to punch someone. This is idiotic._

_No. Punching. Anyone._

_Fine._

_I’m sure you’ll look very handsome._

Kylo didn’t respond but she felt the blush rise on his cheeks.

They let Rey float in an oversized tub with steaming hot water sprinkled with lavender and rose petals for a luxuriously long time. Lios had crude plumbing that piped water into shower spouts in the bath houses, but it was lukewarm at best, and there were no tubs to be found anywhere. Everyone stayed clean, but it wasn’t enjoyable. She didn’t ask how they managed to fill the huge bath with hot water inside a tent. She suspected everything was easier when you were surrounded by druids.

Saritas introduced two people to Rey when she finally roused her out of the warm water to dry off. A petite woman with olive skin named Elena sat Rey on a chair, combing her wet hair and snipping the ends as she went. A similarly small man introduced as her brother, Diego, cut her jagged nails, buffing them with a fine-grained file until they shone. Rey quizzed them with endless questions while they worked, about where they were from, how they found the town, what they did, their friends and family who traveled with them. They gave her honest, friendly answers. They were Aesthetics – devoted to style and beauty. Diego was the talkative one, rambling a hundred words a minute, explaining how their work was an art form, peppering his answers with ridiculous puns that made Rey groan and then laugh while Elena smiled silently at her brother’s antics. She rolled Rey’s hair into papers and pinned them around her head. While Diego disappeared to get her clothes, Elena opened a cosmetics box. She held up a brush and pot of rouge. “Do you like makeup?”

Rey bit her lip. “I’ve never worn any.”

Elena smiled. “It’s fun, if you like it. I enjoy it.” Her own face was immaculately made up with bold colors and lines and Rey silently agreed with Diego. It was an art form.

She nodded slowly. “I’ll try it.” She pointed to Elena’s darkly powdered and kohl rimmed eyes, the black substance smudged out to a thick smoky line around her lids. “Like that, but less.”

Elena’s eyes lit up. “I have some perfect colors for that. Black might be too intense. You have such beautiful, bright eyes. Let’s make them shine.”

Rey relaxed in the chair while Elena applied various things to her face with feathery brushes. Rey felt like a human canvas. She finished by dotting a thick tinted cream on her lips. “Ooh,” she breathed. “It looks very beautiful on you. Now for the last thing. Hold still, this is going to feel funny.” She placed both her hands on Rey’s head. She felt the Force warp and shimmer around her, and her scalp tingled. Steam rose from her head, dissipating into the roomy tent. Then she unrolled Rey’s bundled hair, gently shaking out the locks. Rey fingered a curl – it was fully dry and softly waved. She wondered about the ethics of using the Force to dry one’s hair and smirked to herself. Kylo would probably have a fit.

Diego reappeared with a giant lumpy package under one arm. He whistled appreciatively. “You do great work, sis.” He held the package out to Rey. “This is for you to wear, we’ll let you get dressed.”

They exited the tent and Rey carefully unwrapped the twine and removed the thick paper. She gasped when she reached inside, her hands gliding over thick, buttery fabric. She shook out a floor length dress, the lush fabric swishing. It was a soft, pearly white, cut in simple lines with long sleeves and a skirt with slashed panels beginning just below the top of the thighs. Rey glanced to the floor and noticed a pair of fitted pants of the same luminescent fabric. Undergarments, belt, boots, thick socks, and gloves lay inside the package as well. They’d thought of everything. She ran a hand along one sleeve, afraid of snagging the silky fabric. She’d never dreamed of wearing anything so gorgeous and elegant.

She carefully dressed, cinching the belt around her slender waist. The belt was impossibly soft,  the fawn fabric felt like deer hide, and the boots were a creamy leather of the same color, the insides lined with rabbit fur. They all fit her perfectly. Cold air tickled her back where a row of open buttons sat out of Rey’s reach. She called for Elena to help her. Saritas appeared instead, quickly fastening them. She smiled when she saw the dress on Rey and murmured something in a rolling language Rey didn’t know. “You look like a queen. Almost.”

Rey raised an eyebrow when Saritas pulled a heavy bundle of fabric out from a bag at her hip. Rey sucked in a breath when she saw the thick velvet crimson. “I can’t wear that,” she forced out.

Saritas regarded her with dark eyes, fathomless and wise. “Wear it as a symbol, not of who you thought you thought you were, but who you are now. You represent a change. A choice. Make it represent something new.”

Rey regarded her old cloak for a long minute before reaching for it. The fabric swung around her shoulders with an assuring familiarity as she clasped it at her neck. She handed Rey back her pouch and lightsaber and then motioned to the door.“Let’s find you a mirror.”

* * *

 

 Kylo was in a fabulously bad mood. They’d put him a weird smelling bath and then cut his hair. _Then_ they’d run something tacky through it and pushed it around to wave around his forehead, the Aesthetic clucking her tongue until it fell a certain way. _Then_ they’d given him an entirely new set of clothes to wear. He was tired of people touching him.

Rey on the other hand, was like a songbird at dawn after finding all the worms. She practically soared, tugging on his emotions with an almost irritating glee.

_I’m wearing a pretty dress,_ she informed him.

_Me too_ , he quipped.

Kylo was already back at their new headquarters with the Knights and others who were accompanying them, slouched in a chair with his arms tightly crossed over his chest. He leaned his chair precariously backwards, his eyes fixed on the door as he waited for Rey to come in and jumped to his feet moments before she reached them.

Saritas entered first, Rey trailing behind. She walked into the room uncertainly, gaze going straight to Kylo. He froze the second he saw her. Her dark hair fell in soft, glossy waves around her face. Her eyes glowed, green standing out from the hazel more than usual from the deep plum and golden cosmetics that fringed them.

She wore her red cloak again he noted, the thought quickly overrun as he absorbed her dress. The fluid fabric wrapped her frame like moonlight, the high neck designed to resemble a choker and sleeves cut to bare her collarbone and her shoulders. The slashed skirt both clung to the subtle curve of her hips and swirled around her ankles as she approached him.

He scrambled for coherent thoughts. “Very pretty dress,” he agreed, voice husky.

She shoved her hands into her skirts with relish. “It has pockets!”

He couldn’t resist a small laugh as she smiled up at him. Her lips were so close. He had never wished so hard that they were alone. Rey leaned in, watching his pulse jump at his throat. He smelled like pine needles crushed underfoot, soap, and the smoke of a distant fire burning on a bitter winter night.

Catra conspicuously cleared her throat behind him. “We should get going.”

Kylo placed a hand at the small of her back and guided her out of the room, unwilling to let her get too far. As everyone filed out of the room she noticed all the Knights had been outfitted in matching black uniforms cut in simple lines. The other druids were dressed in white jackets, pristine and minimal, while regular infantry wore gray. Two soldiers unfurled their banners once they reached the gates and Rey bit her lip as she looked at the serpentine wolf design ripple in the wind. The weight of what they were about to do settled on her. Kylo felt it too. She reached for his hand.

Her anxious thoughts were quickly distracted by him. They had indeed cut his hair, and it swept along his forehead in attractive lines. She would miss his shoulder-brushing locks, but this was still long enough to grab. She watched his ears go red as he registered her thoughts.

His black outfit was new as well, a fitted jacket with asymmetrical lapels that fell to mid-thigh over fitted trousers. The bold lines and geometrical seaming matched the style of her own dress, both of their outfits contrasted by the loose, billowing motions of their heavy cloaks. She looked straight ahead, imagining carefully disrobing him piece by piece, fingers slipped under the front of his jacket to find the hidden clasps, running her thumbs beneath the band of his pants, curling her nails into the strip of newly bare skin at the nape of his neck.

He made a frustrated sound in the back of his throat and she tossed a sly glance at him, biting her lip when she saw his entire face was red too.

_Please stop,_ he begged her.

She giggled feverishly. _I don’t want to._

_Fine, retribution then._

Her mind was blown open by the image of her kneeling on their bed, Kylo thrusting into her from behind. One hand gripped the curve of her hip with bruising pressure, the other yanked a handful of her hair, bending her neck back. She could feel his hard cock stretching her with every pump and the heat of his lips as he bent over and nipped her shoulder. The burst of ecstasy as he wrapped a hand around and circled her clit.

She shut her eyes and groaned, a quiet, filthy sound that set Kylo’s cock throbbing. He could feel the heat spreading between her legs. She sighed, diving deeper into the fantasy…

…And was ripped out as sharp claws descended on her shoulder, readjusting to find balance.

_Whatever you are thinking about, stop,_ Branwen chastised her. _I can_ feel _your distraction._

Rey and Kylo growled in unison. “What are you doing here?” She hissed at him.

_Observing. And intimidating._

She didn’t get a chance to ask for a better explanation. Sarit approached, her eyes lingering on Branwen. She had a large black object. Kylo stiffened at the sight.

“You need to wear this,” she told him. In her hands was his helmet. The leather sported more dings and gouges than before, one side severely scraped and rough. A few remnants of grey dust lined the cracks of the silvered visor, but the metal itself had been wiped clean. After a moment’s hesitation he took it, holding it like it would crumble up and disappear.

“Where did you find that?” Rey asked Sarit, voice flat.

“The rubble of the First Order base was a veritable goldmine for scavengers. One of my contacts in the black market told me there was a rumor this survived. Didn’t take long to hunt it down when you know who to lean on.”

“He doesn’t need it,” Rey insisted with a sour frown.

“He does,” Sarit argued. “You don’t keep secret things in a glass case.” She strode away before Rey could respond.

She turned to Kylo, who still stared at his mask, now firmly gripped in his gloved hands. “Please don’t wear that.”

“Saritas is right.” His face was a heavy grey sky that carried the threat of a storm. “My m – the General is coming. We have to look strong. Unafraid.”

She stared into his stormy eyes. “You don’t need it.”

One corner of his mouth pulled into a rueful smile. He didn’t answer. The mask sank over his head, like the jaws of a creature consuming his curved lips and replacing the liquid warmth of his eyes with an empty squinting glare. He took a breath, the sound louder and harsher through the breathing apparatus.

She braced herself, both her shoulders and her mind drawing stiff. She waited for that terrible sound.

“Come on,” he told her, his dulcet tones distorted almost beyond recognition. Her feet remained rooted. His head tilted ever so slightly.

_I’m still here,_ he told her, his mind the hushed softness of a fresh snowfall.

She exhaled slowly. _I know._

They’d reached the gate. A row of soldiers lined the flagstone boulevard that led straight to the main city hall. Lios had _not_ been built to discourage invaders. The wide boulevard might be bad for resisting siege, but it was perfect for staging an impressive welcome. Rey and Kylo took their places at the end of the row, flanked on one side by their Knights, who stood at the ready with hands hanging loosely near on their lightsabers.

The minutes dragged by. Kylo’s grip grew tighter and tighter around Rey’s hand. She knew he could feel the approach of his mother. His anxiety grew frenetic, a hive of angry wasps buzzing in her mind. She wondered if this was a mistake and silently thanked both the gods and Saritas for bringing them back his mask. She hated it, but he did need it.

She cast out, feeling for the energy of Finn or any of the other Resistance fighters she knew, but only recognized an amorphous blob of people moving their way. She stepped closer to Kylo as the call went out to raise the gate, holding her breath as the Resistance delegation entered, wide-eyed, jumpy, hands tight on their weapons. More than one face went pale when they saw their banners. Rey returned her focus to the four soldiers at the very front of the group. They halted a safe distance from Rey and Kylo and parted. General Leia stepped forward from between them, back straight, light glinting off her Republic decorations. Kylo inhaled sharply. They locked gazes, and mother met son for the first time in over a decade.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I miiigghht get another chapter posted in a week. I'm going to be in iceland, so I don't know if I'll have time to finish it and get it up. I'll try though! Hope you guys enjoy some of the (brief) lightheartedness. The next chapter will have more, as well as the return of several characters!


	30. Chapter 30

General Leia shifted in her saddle, straightening her shortcoat for the tenth time since sighting Lios. The soldiers around shared her anxiety.

 _I’m here to address the new military presence who call themselves the Fíor Stait,_ she reminded herself. She tried not to laugh at the audacity of their name.

Very few at the Resistance base knew the full facts about this new group. Almost everyone who knew the truth was with her at this moment. Most at the base were told some high-ranking soldiers had defected from the First Order and joined with rogue citizens and the Lios governor, and now they wanted to join with the Resistance. In reality, the new group was composed heavily of shapeshifters and druids, they controlled Lios completely, and they were led by Rey Vivant and her SON. And they hadn’t _asked_ the Resistance to help them, they had _told_ the Resistance to respectfully _cooperate_ with them.

Leia remembered when her messengers came back with the letter. It was sealed with red wax and the stamp of a wolf, instructing them when and how to approach Lios, when to dismount their horses, where to leave them, and how many people they were allowed to bring. She was surprised they even let them come armed. Apparently they were not concerned with them as a threat. The signature is what really did her in.

_Respectfully,_

_Kylo Ren and Rey Vivant, your King and Queen, Sovereigns of Fíor Stait, the True Republic._

After laughing until she couldn’t breathe and tears streamed down her face, she read the letter again, the seemingly neutral wording filled with craftily composed threats buried within. They made it clear they were here to stay, that they were powerful in ways the Resistance couldn’t imagine, and that it was in their best interest to tread lightly and cooperate. That they’d used the term Resistance and not Republic didn’t escape her attention. They wouldn’t recognize the authority of the Republic. Their letter plunged the Resistance command into a fierce dispute. Vice Admiral Holdo insisted they meet with them. Most of the command disagreed with her, but people tended to disagree with Holdo often. If it wasn’t for the part regarding Snoke and the map, she never would have come.

 _Probably_ wouldn’t have come. She had to continually remind herself that this was official business, not a personal mission. She couldn’t let her feelings get in the way. She pushed away images of Han, still laying prone in the same state he’d been since Finn and Chewie brought him back. A coma, the Healers said. They couldn’t do anything about it. He would either come out of it or he wouldn’t. No one knew what happened to him or how he got that way, but the First Order was still responsible for it.

They reached the gates and a call went out. The massive apparatus grated as it was cranked up. Leia’s view was unfortunately blocked by the four giants someone had selected to walk at the very front. Over their heads, she could see banners flapping from turrets and towers, decorated with the same wolf symbol from the wax seal, the true colors revealing a split design. The sight of it turned her stomach.

As she evaluated the people that lined the boulevard, she knew her fib about defected officials and leftover Lios soldiers wouldn’t hold for long. She expected a ragtag group. Instead she was met with different divisions of soldiers and officers in crisp lines and spotless uniforms. She wondered if this was just an attempt to appear organized and threatening, or if their entire force was like this. She suspected it was the latter.

The soldiers halted and peeled off, clearing her view. Her calm features slipped and she stared. Rey caught her eye first. Clad in a striking white dress, with her dark waves spilling across the shoulders of her red cloak, she was absolutely gorgeous. She regarded Leia with an almost haughty expression, one she’d never seen before. No, not haughty, she amended. Regal. A glossy crow perched on one shoulder, watching Leia with uncanny awareness that sent chills down her neck. A lightsaber was strapped to her hip. Yes, Rey looked beautiful. But she also looked downright dangerous. Drawn like a magnet, her gaze swung to the figure standing arm-to-arm with Rey.

Towering in a boldly cut black uniform, face covered in that infamous mask, was her son. She could feel him, all the way back to the Resistance base. His presence had sharpened the closer they got, and now he was here, mere steps away. She forced air back into her lungs. _Remember why you’re here._ The mask was locked on her and her heart seemed to be collapsing on itself. Memories inundated her: a raven-haired child sneaking muddy frogs into the house, weekly appearing with sick animals that he insisted on nursing back to health, galloping off into the forest with his friends. A tiny, fragile body placed squirming and red-faced and wet into her arms, screaming in protest of his existence. How she could always quiet his cries. Until she couldn’t anymore. When did that happen? When did it change?

_Remember why you’re here!_

Leia struggled to haul herself out of her memories.

Rey spoke first. “The Fíor welcomes the Resistance.”

A tremor passed through Leia’s forces and she spied more than one pale face in her periphery. “We accept your welcome,” she responded in a voice that belied her growing anxiety.

Rey swept her hand towards the buildings behind her. “Won’t you join us for an exchange of information? We have much to discuss.”

Leia and her soldiers advanced and Rey held up a hand. “Just you and four of your choosing.” Anger nipped at Leia’s nerves. She would have to leave her soldiers out here, alone.

“No harm will come to your people.” Kylo’s mechanized voice rocked through her. His assurance carried a quiet threat: no harm better come to their people either.

Leia nodded sharply and motioned to Poe. “You, Finn, Chewie, and Warren, with me. Stryker and Nettrick are in charge until we return.” They fell in behind her without comment, and the five of them trailed Rey and Kylo towards a large building.

Mere steps from the building, Leia faltered, gaze whipping over her shoulder. A second later, Kylo slammed to a halt, spinning on his heel. His lightsaber crackled in an instant, followed by Rey’s and a ring of the soldiers uniformed in black closed around the two of them, all facing the gate. Leia noticed Rey’s free hand was cinched around Kylo’s forearm, her focus locked on him instead.

Gasps rippled as the gate began to tremble, the machinery moving of its own accord. It cranked open, revealing a gray-haired man clad in rough brown robes. A green lightsaber glowed at his side.

Leia rushed to the gate. Her brother had returned.


	31. Chapter 31

Luke was grumpy.

He’d been traveling for what seemed like weeks, following the ebb and flow of the Force across the country, hoping it would lead him to the right place.

To his nephew. And to the girl. Rey.

Even after everything, they’d still found each other. But he didn’t feel particularly surprised, even in the beginning he had the niggling doubt that their attempts to separate them might be futile. All will be as the Force wills it.

But they hadn’t stayed in one place. He moved, then she moved, then they’d moved together, then they moved all around again. Every time he set a course, the Force dipped in a different direction.

Trying to chart a journey across such a large space with only the Force to guide him was like trying to steer a ship through a turbulent sea without a compass, or even the stars, to guide him. Educated guesses, at best.

Finally – _finally_ – they stopped moving. When he realized where they’d stopped, he’d set a punishing pace. Not even a day went by before he woke to the tremors. In his chest, in his mind. In the Force. It bunched around an energy point, like angry bees around a hive. And in the center, their queen. Someone so strong that he felt her energy even though he’d never met her. And she’d appeared in an instant. He didn’t know what in the hells was going on, but he knew he needed to be there.

Mere days from Lios, he began to encounter travelers with fantastic tales. A massive army of druids had taken over the city. It had only been a few druids and some soldiers. They’d razed it to the ground. It’s been a peaceful coup d’état. No one was harmed, not even the soldiers. They’d slaughtered every warrior in the city. The city still burned. Not a single building ever burned.

But no matter the variation of the story, two figures always stood out. A man and woman, fighting side by side with lightsabers, _ruling_ together. And the Republic flags no longer flew in the city. They were replaced with a new one. A traveler drew him a picture. Even the crude colorless sketch of the wolf emblem sent chills down his back.

He woke before dawn that day, determined to reach the city by noon. The presence of his sister grew stronger with every mile. He hoped he’d be able to slip away from Lios and meet with her at the Resistance base. In all his travels, she was the only thing he’d truly missed.

Only a couple hours from the city, Leia started moving towards Lios. He would beat her there, but not by much. He doubted she could tell he was moving closer to her. Leia was certainly Force-sensitive, but she’d never had extensive training. Something he regretted more each day.

As he drew closer, he attempted to hide his presence from his nephew. It would only muffle it, Ben would realize soon enough.

Sure enough, he beat his sister and her delegation to the city. He paced behind a knoll while he waited for them, stomach knotted. Not long after they disappeared through the gate, he decided he couldn’t wait for her to come out. Might as well face them all at once.

He lifted the gate without hesitation, igniting his lightsaber on the way. Better to be safe than dead. He had no idea what would happen on the other side. That mysterious Force-user was there, along with Ben, Rey, and a host of other tangibly powerful individuals. Leia could be walking into a trap.

The gate creaked to the top of its tracks. Every face turned his direction, many gasping. Unconsciously his gaze was drawn to the pair of figures encircled by a ring of red blades. His masked nephew stood next to Rey, who wore her own kind of mask.

Leia eclipsed his view as she beelined his way. A smile split his stern features and Leia threw her arms around him. “I have half a mind to punch you,” she mumbled into his shoulder. They pulled away. “Where in the hells have you been?” she demanded, but she couldn’t get her face to match her words. She was just too _happy_ to see him.

“Where haven’t I been,” he responded. “I’m ready for a warm hearth and a comfortable chair I never have to get out of again.”

Leia chuckled, the sound half-swallowed as she pushed back tears. Luke still clasped her arms, but his gaze strayed over her shoulder. Leia watched his face go slack as he fully took in Kylo and Rey standing shoulder to shoulder, surrounded by their imposing guard.

“What’s going on here?” Luke questioned, his voice pitched low and only for her.

Leia angled her body to include everyone standing behind them and swept a hand towards Rey and Kylo. “We were just about to convene to discuss the purpose of this meeting.”

Rey interrupted her next words. “Please give your Sovereigns a moment to discuss. Alone.” She hauled Kylo away from the group without waiting for a response, steering him around a corner and out of sight.

Luke gaped, turning his incredulous expression on Leia. “Your _Sovereigns?”_

She smirked with slight eye roll. “They envision themselves as some kind of new royalty. I’m not entirely sure, to be honest. It all sounds ridiculous.”

Luke squeezed her hand. “Wait here.” He followed Rey and Kylo’s retreat, sidling up to the building and peeking around the corner. The rough fibers of his woolen cloak snagged on the uneven brick. He was too far away to hear their conversation but he was decent at reading lips. He waited for someone to break the silence, but neither did. Instead they stood, foreheads pressed together as Rey curled one hand around the back of Kylo’s neck with the other on his cheek. He clung to her hips, her cloak bunched in his fists. Finally, she pulled away, searching his eyes. They remained locked like that as several minutes slid by. Expressions flashed over their features but they never uttered a word.

Luke sagged around the corner, reeling. They were already sharing thoughts, he thought. Clear, understandable thoughts. Enough that it was easier than speaking out loud.

He hurried back to Leia, who tilted her head at his troubled face. He searched for words. “They’re…they – “

“I know,” she softly interrupted. “I can _feel_ it. Their energy flows together.”

Luke nodded, his gaze wandering into the distance. “What if we made a huge mistake, separating them? Maybe none of this would have happened.”

Leia considered his words. “Maybe. Or maybe it would have been worse. Maybe Snoke would have found them right away and we’d all be living under the First Order right now.”

Luke didn’t respond. He wasn’t sure if he agreed. They had been so naïve, thinking a little memory wiping and some distance could keep Rey and Ben apart. _Kylo,_ he corrected himself. Ben was gone, he thought. Or so it appeared.

“When her parents disappeared,” Luke started, still staring off into nothing. “I couldn’t believe they could do anything so cruel. But completely removing her ties to the Resistance was perhaps the smartest thing they could have done.”

Leia’s brows knit. “How do you know about that?”

It was Luke’s turn to smirk. “I was gone, but I wasn’t unaware. I’ve been keeping track of her since her family moved away. Since Ben – Kylo – left.”

A tiny grimace crossed Leia’s face. “I have to believe my son is still in there somewhere. How could Rey be here, with him, if he wasn’t? She was so full of light.”

“People change,” Luke said. He cut off as Rey and Kylo reappeared. He trailed a step behind her, hands clasped harshly behind his back.

The crow descended, settling again on Rey’s shoulder.

“I have no clue about that,” Leia murmured to him, answering before he could ask.

Rey stopped walking long enough to incline her head towards Luke. “You may join our meeting,” he told him brusquely, before changing directions towards a large building. Their glaring unit of black-clad guards stalked after them.

Luke followed Leia and her small detachment into the building and then a lofty room occupied by a long table. Leia and the rest hovered awkwardly around the chairs, unconsciously waiting for Rey and Kylo to sit. But they remained standing at the head of the table and a red-haired woman at Kylo’s left side pointed at the seats. Their guards had blessedly extinguished their lightsabers. They also declined seats, instead fanning out at intervals along the wall until they surrounded the room.

Leia slipped into a seat at the opposite end of the table, fixing her keen gaze on Rey and her son. Luke and the others clustered at her end, leaving several empty seats between them and Rey and Kylo.

A woman swept into the room. Tall and statuesque, with an almost ageless, mature beauty, she carried the distinct aura of power. Luke instinctively knew it was her – the Force-user who appeared seemingly out of nowhere. A smaller man followed her inside, slipping into a shadowed corner, his lanky frame and casual slouch a stark change from the towering figures of Rey and Kylo’s druid guards. The woman halted at Rey’s side, remaining a few steps behind her. Watching.

The air prickled with energy. There were more Force-users crowded into this space than Luke had encountered in his entire life. Beyond the chilling fear of knowing only two of them belonged on the Resistance’s side was a trace of excitement. He’d never felt this kind of power concentration. Without prompting, everyone turned their attention to Rey. She waited until every eye was on her before she began to speak.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Two chapter for you guys! I know they are both very short. I have the next one about half done but no expectation of when it will be done...Things are going to pick up quite a bit from here.
> 
> As always, thank you SO MUCH for reading and commenting, it means the world to me!!


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